Dylan Grimes enjoys Tigers's unbeaten startBy Jennifer Phelan
afl.com.au
11:05am AEST Tuesday, April 16, 2013THE TIGERS are bracing for a Collingwood outfit determined to make a statement and have flagged Saturday's clash at the MCG as a 'huge opportunity' to measure where they're at, says defender Dylan Grimes.
Grimes said coach Damien Hardwick had not emphasised the importance of the round four clash, which the Tigers will head into undefeated, but the players knew what it meant on the back of the club's best start to a season since 1995.
He said they would be ready for a Magpies' side on the rebound from their Sunday loss to Hawthorn.
"There's a lot of focus points for us this week because challenge is the heat's on us; Collingwood will want to come out and make a big statement so the challenge for us is to be consistent and put in another good performance," Grimes said.
"It's a really good test for us as a club to go up against what is one of the best teams in the competition and really test our structures against theirs ... it's a huge opportunity to see where we're at.
"There's been a lot of fans dormant since all the flags we won a couple of decades ago and it's good to be able to repay those fans.
"There's players at the club that have been here a long time, like 'Tucky' and 'Newy' and it's good to start winning for those guys because they've been through the hardships and it's good to get the result on board."
Grimes has battled persistent hamstring problems in recent years, most recently requiring a repair to his tendon in the pre-season.
He said the increased depth of the backline, improved further by the acquisition of Troy Chaplin and Ricky Petterd, had helped him narrow his focus to his own recovery and regain confidence in his body.
"It wasn't easy, that's for sure, but the good thing is in previous years if we had a player go down, it might have been more of a issue on field," he said.
"It would have left a hole in the 22.
"With such depth this year, there were guys who were able to come in and fill my spot quite easily and it allowed me to just focus on myself and my rehab to get myself right for this year. It was really positive."
http://www.afl.com.au/news/2013-04-16/the-tiges-are-achanging-grimes
