Ivan Maric's standing in Richmond's side cannot be underestimated.
Maric's absence for the first 10 rounds of the season as he recovered from ankle surgery left a gaping hole in Richmond's lineup.
Now with six games under his belt, Maric is starting to come into his own.
His battle with Lions ruckman Stefan Martin was intriguing and Maric said he relished the challenge.
"I love getting into that zone where I'm absolutely hurting and my mind wants me to stop and I just keep going.
"I believe that if can play in that zone for longer than my opponent I can eventually wear him down, but it was a good duel with Stef today."
The mentality of doing "the little things" had deserted the Tigers in the early stages of this season, Maric said.
But the Tigers ruckman saw signs in the win over the Lions that made him think things were starting to turn.
"I believe it happens at training. You have to do it at training. You've got to train your mind because there's times in the game where you're going to hurt," he said.
"Your legs are burning and you've got to say, 'Shut up legs' and just keep running, find and then stop your opponent."
Source:
AFL website