Former Adelaide Crows champion Ben Rutton joined Mark Fine & Nigel Carmody to chat about his appointment as new Richmond Assistant Coach.
VIDEO:
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* I’m really excited about the opportunity. In terms of me being able to develop as a coach, I certainly see a great opportunity there at Richmond. I’m really keen to learn from Dimma, Ladey and the other assistant coaches. The feeling I got from them is that they’re really proactive and keen to improve. So for me to be part of that and hopefully really develop myself is the opportunity I’m looking for.
* I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to talk to a few other clubs which was really valuable for me. The opportunity to stay in Adelaide was an enticing one and I suppose a more comfortable decision for me. But I think the right decision was to try and get outside of Adelaide and experience a different culture. Melbourne’s really appealing in terms of all the clubs and Richmond especially – such a big, powerful footy club and so well resourced. So that was what really appealed to me. The decision for me wasn’t taken overly lightly but I’m just really excited about the opportunity that Richmond provides.
* I feel as if I’ve got something to add to the defensive group at Richmond. I see some really quality players there. I’m going to be working with the defenders which is something that I’ve had most experience with. I’m really passionate about defence within footy, and see it as such an important role. I think I’ve got some skills with the key-position players as well as a bit of leadership with the players. At this stage, I really see myself as getting involved in the back six and I’m also really keen on looking at how the whole team defends as a group. That’s sort of my passion.
* When our (Adelaide’s) backline turned over a fair bit, we had a pretty inexperienced backline and it was part of my role, being a more experienced player, to try and teach these guys and develop them a bit quicker. I just really enjoyed doing that and I suppose just got the passion for coaching through that.
* Next Coach program run by David Wheadon was essential for me really. I’d done the Level 2 coaching and done my bits and pieces helping out at the Crows but Dave is really challenging and lets you form your own philosophy, your own game plan and the way you see the game going. Dave’s a fantastic mentor for me and I still keep in contact with him and really value his opinion and thoughts on the game. He’s really well studied, not only in the AFL, but sports across the world and especially with coaching. That for me, really clarified in my mind what I stood for as a coach and what I want to achieve. Obviously, I haven’t got my feet under the table yet, so I’m still really raw and have heaps and heaps to learn. But I think doing that Next Coach program is the best preparation any player can do before they get a coaching job.
* I’m really excited about getting involved. I’m keen just to get in there and have a look at how things are run. They (Richmond) have got a really core group of players and other than Chris Newman, I think their next oldest might be Ivan Maric at 28. That’s a really good age profile of their group and especially some of the defenders that I’m going to be working with. So it’s going to be great. Obviously, the midfielders with Martin, Deledio and Cotchin are standouts in the competition. So there’s a really good foundation there and that’s why I’m keen to get in and involved and hopefully move them up the ladder really quickly. I think there’s real scope, as you saw in the last half of the year, for them to do some damage in the competition next year.
Full article: http://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/2014-09-11/rutten-rapt-to-join-tigers 
