Cotchin wants to be a Tiger for lifeSam Landsberger
Moreland Leader
August 1, 2011RICHMOND fans can sleep easy.
Their hot favourite for this year’s club best-and-fairest and captain-in-waiting, Trent Cotchin, is a Tiger for life.
The 21-year-old midfield star revealed he was excited by the nucleus of young talent at Punt Rd and wants to be a one-club player.
‘‘No doubt about it, Richmond for life,’’ he said after training in Craigieburn last week.
‘‘The young guys are exciting, but I’ll start with a couple of guys we drafted as mature-age players. Robin Nahas has had a fantastic year, Bachar Houli has come into the group and really given us some drive off halfback.
‘‘And then you’ve got young players like Batchy ( Jake Batchelor), Concs (Reece Conca), Ben Griffiths, who is exciting up forward, and other players like Vickers (Tyrone Vickery), who is really taking his position up forward and as secondary ruck.
‘‘We all know what path we’re on and where we’re heading and there’s no doubt it’s exciting for not only us but supporters and our families who are a part of it, too.’’
Cotchin’s numbers compare with this year’s Brownlow fancies.
Last week he gathered a careerbest 38 touches against the elite Geelong midfield.
Cotchin ranks in the top five AFL players for kicks and sits comfortably in the top 10 for contested possessions, the youngest player in that bracket.
Surrounding the Northern Knights recruit in the top 10 are Gary Ablett, Chris Judd and Simon Black, winners of four Brownlow medals, while Cotchin has won more of his own footy than any Collingwood player this season.
But the No. 2 draft pick was quick to shy away from his star status.
‘‘I set pretty high expectations and this was my first opportunity to have a full pre-season,’’ he said.
‘‘ But there’s been plenty of games where I haven’t played to a standard where I wanted, and other times where I’ve met that standard. It’s just about raising that bar as often as you can and as much as you can throughout the year.’’
As for his breakout match against the Cats? ‘‘For me I always rate my game on how I impact the side and how I influence the team, so it’s hard to say when you have a loss.’’ Coach Damien Hardwick has rewarded Cotchin’s rise in the 17 games he has played this season.
Last month he was sent to mind Judd as Carlton bounced to a 103-point win before going headto-head with Ablett in Cairns two weeks later.
‘‘There’s no doubt they’re the superstars of the competition and that’s where I want to get to, but there’s plenty of work to be done in between,’’ Cotchin said.
‘‘Just to see the way Juddy works in and around stoppages and then his burst outside of the stoppage is fantastic and that’s why he is the best player in the competition.’’
With captain Chris Newman expected to miss Sunday’s match against West Coast, Cotchin is a strong chance to captain Richmond for the second time in his 59-game career.
Cotchin meets Richmond’s leadership group each week and, with Newman, 29, approaching the twilight of his career, the Ascot Vale resident is seen as a logical replacement.
Cotchin said he would love to lead the Tigers permanently, while his TAC Cup coach Paul Satterley lauded his ability to lead by example.
‘‘He was always prepared to speak up and voice his opinion, even as a younger player at the club he was well-respected and had an older head on his shoulders,’’ Satterley, who was in charge of the Knights in 2007, said.
‘‘When I coached him he was full-on with his footy and his focus and where he wanted to go.’’
Former Richmond coach Terry Wallace kept a close eye on Cotchin throughout the TAC Cup with his son Brent in the system that year.
Cotchin was taken one pick behind Carlton's Matthew Kreuzer, with the pair still best mates after growing up together.
‘‘We used to have a bit of a laugh at (Northern Knights) selection meetings back in the day, debating who you’d take, Kreuzer or Cotchin,’’ Satterley said. ‘‘We were trying to work out who would be the bigger superstar. You were never going to do poorly if you went either way.’’
With five games remaining Cotchin said the Tigers were hoping to revert to their winning form of earlier this season by playing on instinct and with a more offensive mind frame. And when asked if he would become a Blues fan come September in support of Kreuzer, he said: ‘‘No way. Maybe I’ll have a soft spot for Kreuze, but not the Blues.’’
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