Richmond faces an acid test against Adelaide at the MCG Gerard Whateley
From: Herald Sun
June 14, 2013 6:27PMWE'VE been here before with Richmond, standing on the bring after the breakthrough.
A chance to consolidate the gains and reinforce the climb.
Given its recent history, the opportunity creates a quiet desperation. The steps on the ascent are eyed with suspicion and uncertainty. The must-win games are unnerving, the should-win matches little short of excruciating.
Under such a strain the Tigers have typically receded. A freefall back to familiar ground. Expectation returned to a dormant state, to be faced another time.
That time is now. From this precipice, Richmond must step up.
Damien Hardwick's team memorably reached base camp on the cusp of last winter. For an afternoon it terrorised Hawthorn and the rollercoaster turned joy ride. Richmond's yearning became an awakening.
In the aftermath, the leadership spoke of the uncertainties of the past. Fluctuating levels of resilience and commitment. The newfound surety brought with it calm.
And in the calm was found the confidence.
The trouncing of Hawthorn followed a beating of the Sydney Swans.
They were days to fire the imagination.
No sooner was New Richmond declared than it fell through the ice. Scorched into the mind calamitous losses to Fremantle, Gold Coast and Carlton.
At the end of the campaign a draw with lowly Port Adelaide seemed unnecessary mockery of a faithful tormented beyond what seems reasonable.
The fresh assault has been quietly taken. Footing was found on the first couple of steps. Jittery they might have been, but timely were the early markers.
Teams from the higher ground issued the checks. Reality dispensed by Collingwood, Geelong and Essendon.
The gains were in question until the early days of winter. A performance in the west to re-establish the foundations. Triumph on the road seems to increase the magnitude of achievement. Victory over West Coast was a much-heralded landslide.
Discipline and daring were in perfect counterbalance. Wise heads and impetuous youth prevailed in tandem. Crucially, while the Tigers were good with the ball, they were better without it.
It was a performance for its participants to believe in. To trust and repeat. But not to get carried away with it. For all the caution of the journey, the Tigers retain a special capacity to become overexcited.
With a week to refresh, Richmond goes once more unto the breach. To a match that a good side wins without undue stress. The sort that has tripped up this side.
The Tigers are expected and should expect to beat Adelaide. Such circumstance has been known to prompt spasm. When the tension sets in at Richmond it stifles the run and undermines the decision-making. It was the road to ruin at the hand of Essendon.
As mitigation Adelaide has reached its lowest point. After being brutalised by the Swans, Brenton Sanderson has set the challenge to which any team worth its salt responds.
"If this is a proud group, if this is a club that wants to be a finalist in 2013, we've got to start winning games straight away," the plain-speaking coach said publicly. You can be sure the message is blunter within.
The elements should combine for a furious contest at the MCG and provide deep insight into the psyche of Richmond. Will it set out to absorb the Adelaide onslaught early?
Or will it have the gumption to seize the momentum and unload the full artillery on a vulnerable opponent from the outset?
Does Richmond have the killer within to set the Crows immediately on the back foot and bury a travelling adversary in a hostile environment under a mountain of doubt?
Can Richmond live in the moment without obsessing about a result 120 minutes in the distance? Can it go from contest to contest and ride the necessary twists and turns without stressing the notion that it should be winning?
Will it accept and welcome the pressure this day presents, knowing it is but a sample of what Elimination Final day would hold?
It might seem a perpetual state but the football world is waiting for Richmond.
Even Richmond is waiting for Richmond.
Today it steps out on to the snow-covered crevasse and we hold our collective breath over the fate of the mission.
http://www.news.com.au/sport/afl/richmond-faces-an-acid-test-against-adelaide-at-the-mcg/story-fndv8t7m-1226664068582
