Changes for Carlton game / Gas won't be risked (AFL site)

[one-eyed]

Tigers won't risk Gaspar
12:55:47 PM Wed 27 July, 2005
Andrew Wu
Sportal for afl.com.au

Richmond defender Darren Gaspar is "no certainty" to face Carlton, according to coach Terry Wallace, as the club takes a conservative approach to his hamstring injury.

While there is only minimal damage to Gaspar's hamstring, injured in round 16 against St Kilda, Wallace was aware that the two-time All-Australian defender could miss the rest of the season should he come back too early and aggravate the injury.

"He'll train hopefully today. We'll just monitor him during the week so he's a chance of playing. He's certainly no certainty. We can't afford to risk him," Wallace said before training on Wednesday morning.

"We just got to make the right decisions. There wasn't a lot of damage there by any stretch of the imagination, so from that point of view he's been running and been able to handle the step ups until now. He's reasonably confident within himself that he'll be able to step up, but until he trains at full pace you don't know."

But exciting youngster Richard Tambling, who has been hampered by hamstring, back and toe problems in his debut season, is a chance of returning to face the Blues after playing well for Coburg in the VFL last week.

"The kid had not played a lot of footy. We just sort of thought he needed to get out, have a run around and have a bit of a kick and get to the stage where he got full ground time," Wallace said of club's reasons for leaving their second pick in the 2004 NAB AFL Draft out of the senior team after their loss to the Saints.

"I mean, he's had such an interrupted preparation and then he was playing on and off the interchange bench. He just hasn't had any continuity in footy. You used 'drop', I would have almost used 'rested' as the reason why we put him back."

"He played quite well. He certainly played well enough to be up for consideration but certainly no guarantees."

http://afl.com.au/default.asp?pg=news&spg=display&articleid=218018

[mightytiges]

No point rushing back Gas against Carlton. IMO give him one more week and make sure he's right for the last 4 games.

Harts appears to be the only one from Coburg who deserves to come in. Swap him for Moore. Give Tambo more time at Coburg getting a few full games under his belt to get his match fitness up before bringing him back.

[one-eyed]

Richmond considers punt on Gaspar
Chip Le Grand
The Australian
July 28, 2005

RICHMOND may gamble on the suspect hamstring of Darren Gaspar as it prepares for Sunday's match against Carlton at the MCG, one it must win to retain a realistic chance of playing in this year's finals.

But if the fitness of the 29-year-old All-Australian defender will dominate today's match committee meeting at Punt Road, it is Gaspar's younger team-mates upon whom coach Terry Wallace is relying to book his club an unexpected September appearance.

The runaway Richmond bandwagon of the early season has slowed to a trundle in recent weeks. For the first time since round three, the Tigers find themselves outside the top eight looking in.

Given the youth and inexperience of Wallace's side, the 2005 Tigers are showing all the classic symptoms of late-season fatigue.

But Wallace yesterday cited Essendon's 1993 premiership side, the fabled baby Bombers, as evidence of what can happen when an emerging group of players gets close enough to a finals campaign to sniff their first AFL spring.

"You go back through history and look at the Essendon side when they won as the baby Bombers," Wallace said.

"They did exactly that. When others were getting worn out they just got invigorated and excited about the whole challenge of playing finals footy.

"If we do get there, we will play young people and give them the opportunity and experience of what it is all about. If we do happen to get there it will be the younger guys who we are taking with us on the journey."

For a team sitting outside the top eight with five games to play, Richmond is still in an enviable position. Last year's wooden spooners have three winnable games against Carlton, Hawthorn and the Western Bulldogs to come.

Despite the Tigers' patchy form over the past month, they can earn a finals place without relying on upset results or the form of other teams.

Just as importantly, there were few expectations that Richmond would play finals at the start of the year and, for the most part, those expectations have not dramatically changed.

Wallace knows that to miss this year's series would hardly be "wrist-slashing stuff" for a team that fielded five players with less than 20 games experience against Port Adelaide last Saturday night.

Teenage rookie Richard Tambling, who was dropped to the VFL for more game time, is likely to return against Carlton.

While experienced players like former captain Wayne Campbell, perhaps in his final year, would be disappointed to miss out on another taste of finals football, Richmond as a club has relatively little to lose over the next five weeks.

"I am just happy to be in this position this late in the season," said Wallace, who is nearing the end of year one in a five-year contract. "From our circumstance, we are quite pleased that the season is still alive this deep into the year.

"Coming from where we were last year I think there is a lot of our supporters who wouldn't have thought they would be looking at a finals berth at this late stage."

Gaspar trained with the main group last night and completed the session without discomfort.

While a successful 15-day return from a hamstring injury would challenge medical convention, it is understood that scans cleared Gaspar of an actual muscle tear.

His problem is back-related hamstring pain, a complaint common to older players.

"We will monitor him through the week," Wallace said.

"He is a chance to play. He is certainly no certainty.

"We can't afford to risk him. If he was to break down from here that would be season-ending you would think."

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,16070059%255E36035,00.html

From: Wallace sounds warning
By Lyall Johnson
The Age
July 28, 2005

Jay Schulz, who has been restricted to two games this season because of a broken ankle, yesterday had his return to the seniors threatened when he injured his right ankle in a training incident. Schulz had his ankle caught under the body of a player in a tackle and later received scans to ascertain the extent of the injury.

Richmond football operations manager Paul Armstrong said yesterday the scan results were expected today but the club was confident Schulz had no serious damage.

http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/realfooty/articles/2005/07/27/1122143909293.html