Tigers didn't come to play against North Melbourne - Hardwick (HUN)

[WilliamPowell]

Richmond coach Damien Hardwick says the Tigers didn't come to play against North Melbourne

ELIZA SEWELL
HERALD SUN JULY 06, 2013 7:29PM

RICHMOND coach Damien Hardwick said the Tigers simply didn't come to play in what he described as an "arse whipping"' at Etihad Stadium.

The Tigers, on track to play finals for the first time since 2001, suffered their heaviest loss of the season against North Melbourne, going down by 62 points.

Richmond – sixth on the ladder last night with a nine-five win-loss record- face Gold Coast in Cairns on Saturday, the match the Tigers have dropped in their past two encounters.

"I thought we didn't come to play early,'' Hardwick said.

"I thought they were harder than us, they worked harder than us and we weren't in the game at any stage.

He said North Melbourne's use of Lachlan Hansen as a loose man hurt the Tigers.

"If you bomb the ball to an outnumber, which we knew we were going to get, you're always going to get an arse whipping and that’s what happened today,'' he said.

"Second half we probably did a little bit better in that area, but it shouldn't be something that we focus on all week and take till half time to fix.''

He said the result was no more serious than one bad game

"...We just played a really bad game of footy today, it's no deeper than that. The reality is we just had a really poor game.''

"You don’t want to lump the whole season into one game,'' he said.

"It's just disappointing that we come out and wanted to play a good style of footy and just couldn't get our game up and going.

"... We think we've got past that stage of the young, inexperienced stuff, we're past it. Good sides perform on a consistent basis and we didn't today, granted we came up against a side which I think played hungry, their pressure and their run was first class.

"...We don’t wipe it, from a work rate point of view, we didn’t work hard enough. We didn't. They outnumbered us at every contest, so that to me is a player issue we've got to work harder.

"We'll be going through vision. From a track point of view, we'll figure it out. What day break - we've got a seven day break, we travel away so we'll work our way through that.’’

Hardwick said his side was different to the one that had previously failed in Cairns against the Suns.

"Last year's last year,'' he said.

"I can bring up 10 years ago, do you want to see how we went then. Reality is we're a different footy side this year."

Brandon Ellis copped a knock to his head late in the first quarter and was substituted out of the game, Daniel Jackson hurt his ankle but played on, while defender Bachar Houli was a late withdrawal from the match with a hamstring issue.

But Hardwick said all three, and injured ruckman Ivan Maric, would be available for Round 16.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/richmond-coach-damien-hardwick-says-the-tigers-didnt-come-to-play-against-north-melbourne/story-fni5f9jb-1226675318642

[TigerTimeII]

so what did they come  to do then have a tea party
cant stand these lame excuses.. facts are he picked the wrong team and has a predictable one dimensional game plan

[RollsRoyce]

So WHY didn't we come to play Damian? Wasn't there enough incentive?? A win would have opened up a game's break on Collingwood just below us now on percentage, and put four games between us and Carlton and WCE. It would also have kept us in contention for a top four finish. Or how about getting some payback on a side that has had the wood on us for a few years now? Wouldn't it have been satisfying to put these penniless paupers back in their coffin, and nail the lid shut? Particularly after the way they talked themselves up all week, as if beating us was a fait accomplish?
No. Apparently none of these reasons was enough for Richmond to show up to play today.
I really hoped, after some solid recent performances, that we as fans were past wondering which Richmond was going to show up on any given day. Seems we got the lazy, inept, couldn't give a stuff version today. Let's hope the REAL Tigers show up and give the Cold Ghost curse a good SMASHING next week. Come on Tigers, you owe us one after todays GUTLESS no-show. 

[WilliamPowell]

Actually I think we got "we believe in all this stuff the media is saying about us" version yesterday

You know the one that shows little respect to its opponent and least of all it's members

[RollsRoyce]

Actually I think we got "we believe in all this stuff the media is saying about us" version yesterday

You know the one that shows little respect to its opponent and least of all it's members

I didn't think we received much media attention last week WP. I kept tuning into AFL360, and Footy Classified, and all the kudos seemed to go to Jabby and his Bummers for their brave win in Perth, and Port for knocking off Collingwood, while we weren't even mentioned in passing. Even when Dan Jackson was On The Couch, they spent most of the interview asking him for his thoughts on the Essendon saga, rather than talking about us. What I'm getting at is, I don't know what it was that blew up the boys heads like balloons yesterday, and running around like they were legends in their own lunchbox. But it certainly wasn't the media. Conversely, you watch them all salivate in the media next week about us being put back in our place. Nothing they like more than seeing us make sure we don't get out from under their jackboots where qwe belong. 

[WilliamPowell]

Actually I think we got "we believe in all this stuff the media is saying about us" version yesterday

You know the one that shows little respect to its opponent and least of all it's members

I didn't think we received much media attention last week WP. 

Wasn't talking about last week RR, the media the last few weeks have been talking us up. Saying we will play finals. Watch last weeks game and listen to the commentators all them saying start looking forward to September tiger fans, this sort of talk has been going on for weeks

We've talked up and crashed again

[Rodgerramjet]

Actually I think we got "we believe in all this stuff the media is saying about us" version yesterday

You know the one that shows little respect to its opponent and least of all it's members

I didn't think we received much media attention last week WP. 

Wasn't talking about last week RR, the media the last few weeks have been talking us up. Saying we will play finals. Watch last weeks game and listen to the commentators all them saying start looking forward to September tiger fans, this sort of talk has been going on for weeks

We've talked up and crashed again

Correct, David King had us potentially playing in the premiership before yesterday's game. Ludicrous.

[RollsRoyce]

Yeah, fair enough WP. Boy oh boy, wowee, but BT sure goes over the top doesn't he? 

[WilliamPowell]

Yeah, fair enough WP. Boy oh boy, wowee, but BT sure goes over the top doesn't he? 

Think Eddie has topped BT this weekend with his bias N0rt and now Bombers commentary

Obviously trying to take his mind of the Harry O sookathon

 

[mightytiges]

"I thought we didn't come to play early,'' Hardwick said.

"I thought they were harder than us, they worked harder than us and we weren't in the game at any stage.

We'll find out this week if it was a one-off "didn't come to play" game. Every team will have a bad game like Hawthorn did against us last year when we were in the same position North are (outside of the Eight after a number of close losses). It's how we respond up in Cairns that now matters.