Richmond's senior men need to step-up and support their captain, senior AFL writer Rohan Connolly reports.
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http://media.theage.com.au/sport/afl-real-footy/captain-cotchin-cant-do-it-all-5329321.htmlTrent Cotchin can't do it all for Tigers Rohan Connolly
The Age
April 7, 2014 Much has changed at Richmond over the last five years. A notoriously volatile club is well run and stable. The financial situation is healthier and membership at an all-time high. And as a team, the Tigers have higher aspirations.
Which is why already the pressure is again building at Punt Road, Richmond standing 1-2, and with a run over the next month taking in Collingwood, Brisbane Lions (away), Hawthorn and Geelong, in very real danger of slipping to 2-5 or even worse.
The Tigers are a far more capable side than they used to be, good enough to have finished last season just half-a-game away from a top-four spot. But one chronic flaw doesn’t appear that much closer to being addressed.
It’s leadership, and on-field at least, there’s still a chronic paucity of it. Where once upon a time it was former champion spearhead Matthew Richardson who seemingly had to carry much of the physical and spiritual load, the only change seems to have been the No.12 being replaced by a No.9.
Richmond captain Trent Cotchin couldn’t have done any more so far this season. He’s arguably been his side’s best player in its three games. But where’s the support coming from?
It’s not like the Tigers are still a bunch of greenhorns. They rank mid-table now in both the average age and games experience categories. But there’s another statistic which says plenty also about Richmond’s dearth of cool, wise and experienced heads come crunch time in games.
The loss of Saturday’s thriller against the Western Bulldogs after the Tigers had got to the front with just over three minutes remaining was the 12th time since the start of 2012 that Richmond has been involved in a game with a margin of 10 points or less. It has won just three of them.
Neither do the Tigers make a habit of clawing back deficits. The vast bulk, if not all, of their recent wins have been on the back of good starts or at least remaining within a kick or two of their opponent.
There can’t be many better indicators that this is a side which jumps on board for the ride but doesn’t have nearly enough prepared to knuckle down to either drag their team back into a contest or hang on to a hard-won lead.
Brett Deledio’s absence on Saturday left an obvious void in that respect. But what of the other Richmond senior men? Because while there’s continued focus on Jack Riewoldt, he’s far from the only culprit on this count. Jack’s first half was diabolical, but at least his second nearly won Richmond the game.
Richmond had eight 100-game-plus players in the line-up against the Bulldogs. How many exerted a real influence, either in terms of numbers or at least a physical presence?
Former skipper Chris Newman and Jake King had 17 touches between them. Troy Chaplin, Shaun Grigg and Shane Edwards each had only 13. The next most experienced were Bachar Houli and Ty Vickery, the former quiet, the latter again following up a good game with a poor one.
There’s certainly not a lot of aggression about this Richmond, either. Much of the grunt factor so far this season has been provided by former Port Adelaide on-baller Matt Thomas, picked up as a rookie lister for depth and only promoted to the senior list days before round one.
In attack, while King provides plenty of bluster, his material returns are more questionable, and in defence Chaplin, Houli, David Astbury and Dylan Grimes are hardly physical types. The numbers will say the Tigers ended up winning both the contested ball and the clearances against the Bulldogs, but this is as much about body language, demeanour and the little one per-centers not necessarily picked up on the stats sheet.
Captain Cotchin, meantime, is having to do it all. He’s not only ranked No.1 at Punt Road for disposals after three games, but both contested and uncontested possession, goal assists and inside 50s.
It was nearly enough against the Bulldogs, whose midfield unit is still young and improving. Against the on-ball divisions of the likes of the Magpies, Hawks and Cats, Richmond will get spanked if the skipper again has to play a lone hand.
Daniel Jackson might be a best and fairest winner, but his support for the captain isn’t necessarily going to be game-changing. Deledio will obviously make a big difference, and Dustin Martin, not for the first time, needs to aspire to the minute-by-minute consistency of his captain.
But less than a month into the new football year, Friday night suddenly shapes as a critical assignment for Richmond. Its opponent has the same win-loss record, but at least knows after Saturday night’s loss to Geelong that its entire performance doesn’t revolve around its own skipper, Scott Pendlebury.
The Tigers certainly can’t claim that at the moment. And know that as things stand, if Collingwood does manage to pull down the shutters on Cotchin, it will be as good as game over.
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