Skipper Trent Cotchin backs teammates to turn around fast-slipping season (H-S)

[one-eyed]

Richmond skipper Trent Cotchin backs teammates to turn around fast-slipping season
Rebecca Williams
Herald-Sun
June 05, 2014

RICHMOND captain Trent Cotchin has backed his embattled teammates to fight and turn around a fast-slipping season.

The 13th-placed Tigers play North Melbourne at Etihad Stadium on Sunday, then Fremantle and Sydney in the following weeks.

Cotchin yesterday said the challenging run was just what the team needed.

“It’s perfect for our group to show the resolve and the resilience that we have,” Cotchin told the Herald Sun.

“We have got a really challenging match against North who are in some really good form.

“They love playing at Etihad but we have just got to make sure that our intensity is right there from the word go at the weekend — crash in, have a crack and win the footy.

“Contested footy is such an important barometer for all games these days so we’ll just have to be playing our best footy this week and then hopefully take some confidence into the week following.”

Cotchin said the players let their fans down with their 50-point loss to Essendon last weekend.

The Tigers slumped to a 3-7 record following the heavy defeat that led coach Damien Hardwick to label his team a “very mediocre football side at the moment”.

Cotchin said the players had to accept responsibility.

“We’re the ones out there making decisions on field,” Cotchin said.

“At the moment, it’s not to the standard that we set for ourselves away from game day.

“But it’s our challenge to turn that around and look within ourselves and within our playing group and make sure that the actions we’re putting out on the park do take us forward.”

Cotchin said the Tigers simply didn’t play with enough intensity last weekend and that was the focus for this week.

“As a playing group we were obviously very disappointed with the way that we performed and it wasn’t the standard that we set out to play each week,” he said.

“Our focus this week is to just be better in our approach and our intensity and make sure that we play four quarters of good footy.

“Certainly on the weekend it was a lack of intensity, comparisons between the GWS game and the Essendon game was our endeavour probably wasn’t to the level that it needs to be.

“You look at the competition now it’s so even and if you’re not on for four quarters ultimately the result will probably go the other way.

“Everyone talks about our year last year, we have just got to get back to playing four quarter performances.”

http://www.news.com.au/sport/afl/richmond-skipper-trent-cotchin-backs-teammates-to-turn-around-fastslipping-season/story-fndv8t7m-1226943388530

[YellowandBlackBlood]

 

[Francois Jackson]

Yay yay work for each other, within the 4 walls, bla bla bla

They work behind closed doors alright, bending each other over

[Mr Magic]

We'll get beaten no matter what he says. North are a better team than us.

[dwaino]

Fast slipping?

[Chuck17]

On ya Cotch, practically saying we are tanking

[cub]

Memo RFC please shut up

[MintOnLamb]

Is this a lightbulb moment

Hey we didn't play with enough intensity??

What a great idea lets be more intensive!!

Then we will win!!

Yay no problemo!!

[cub]

If they couldnt do it against Melbourne and even then not to learn and let Essendon make us look like school boys! Whats gunna change now, im learning to hate them...SHUT UP!!!!!

Yeah Im going Sunday so get stuffed

[Chuck17]

Relax guys it's a statement to hide the fact that we are tanking

[Lozza]

What else can he say, you actually wonder what part of it has been pre-prepared by RFC management and what part is Cotch. Am sure he would be inwardly thinking he is pretty much alone when it comes to intensity and that's not likely to change for the balance of the season. Would like to think the captaincy is making him a better player but fear it's actually breaking him, I hope that doesn't happen.

[Penelope]

maybe we should have recruited paul chapman as cotch doesnt seem to have taken on board that he needs to be harder on his under performing team mates
compare this new age back rubbing to what chapman came out and said about geelong in 2007

"I think at the moment we have probably got some passengers and you can't afford to carry them," he said.

"You need 22 blokes who are going to live your values and just die for your team.

"If you think about it, it is our little war. I know it's not war but a game of footy, but you just need everyone to contribute.

"You can't have blokes picking and choosing, deciding when they want to go and when they don't want to go."

Chapman, one of the Cats' best in yesterday's debacle against the Kangaroos, admitted he was frustrated and angry with what was happening at Skilled Stadium.

"It does make you angry because sometimes it feels as though you go out and do everything you can and then there are some blokes there who aren't doing everything they possibly can," he said.

"You just need a committed 22 players working as hard as they can for the team and then we will win more games than not.

"I reckon we are a good side but not a great team. We have got heaps of talent, probably right up there in the league, I reckon.

"But just playing as a team, coming to play week in, week out is probably the hardest thing we have got to get our heads around, and not pick and choose, just do it."

Like his coach had earlier, Chapman pointed at 18-year-old Joel Selwood, who was playing just his fourth game yesterday, as an example of how players wearing the blue-and-white hoops should perform.

"Joel Selwood was great, he came here to play," he said.

"He was inspiring today, the way that he went at the footy."

On the culture of underachieving and settling for second best which has been a constant slur on the club, Chapman said: "It is not just this year, it is not just last year, it has been around for a while.

"It is something we are going to have to change as a side. You just can't be happy playing and getting your money and having a good lifestyle or whatever it is.

"You have got to go out there and do everything you can to win. You have got blokes like Darren Milburn, who has been here for 13 or 14 years, who hasn't won one (premiership) and you hear him say the culture is still the same.

"That is not the way we want it to be, you want it to change and do everything you can to win."

Everything he said (except for the actual names of players) applies exactly to our situation.

Don't back them in, tell them to pull the finger out or stuff off

[WilliamPowell]

Whatever 

Not listening, don't care

Words mean nothing

Actions are what matters and gee how we failed with those last week

So how they expect anyone to take anything theyv say on board is well laughable TBBH

Just shut up please 

[Smokey]

Everything he said (except for the actual names of players) applies exactly to our situation.

Don't back them in, tell them to pull the finger out or stuff off

Spot on Al.  And I don't think the current coaching group are capable of doing that any more.

[Dice]

"we have just got to make sure that our intensity is right there from the word go at the weekend — crash in, have a crack and win the footy "

Just this weekend Cotch ? Why does he feel the need to even say this ? It just should be a non-negotiable , every game , every week. No need to say it. DO IT !