Daniel Rioli to wear number 17 at Richmond, the same number great uncle Maurice wore at the Tigers
Jon Ralph
Herald Sun
RICHMOND will continue the tradition, handing exciting draftee Daniel Rioli his great uncle Maurice’s no. 17 jumper.
That famous jumper number is the most revered in Richmond’s history, worn by Jack “Captain Blood” Dyer over 19 seasons as well as premiership star Barry Richardson.
Wayne Campbell, Kane Johnson and Chris Newman all inherited that number as part of Richmond captaincy tradition until Trent Cotchin kept his no. 9 when chosen to lead the Tigers in 2013.
Cousin Cyril Rioli won this year’s Norm Smith Medal on grand final day 23 years after Rioli’s feat on the AFL’s biggest stage.
And Daniel’s brilliant performance in a grand final curtain-raiser for an Allies side this year proved he was more than a one-trick pony.
His 19 possessions and a goal showed Richmond recruiter Francis Jackson he had the tank to emerge as a midfield threat after a TAC Cup season as a small forward.
Weeks later he franked it at the AFL draft camp with a blistering 2.89 seconds in the 20m sprint as well as finishing seventh in the 3km time trial (10.09 mins).
Maurice Rioli is Daniel’s great uncle, but he calls him his grandfather in a footy family blessed with freakish skills.
“We were really close. I didn’t expect it really. The club mentioned it so I had to speak to mum and dad about it and we went through it all but I am pretty happy,’’ Daniel Rioli said.
“Hopefully it all goes well. I got told about (Jack Dyer). I didn’t know too much about Jack but I have heard about him since then so just to have that number, I can’t wait to wear it.
“(Maurice) passed away Christmas 2010 and I was really close with him and his family.
“It was good to see his highlights as well. He did some special things — I saw him on Youtube and the internet and even Fox Footy as well. They showed a lot of Footy Flashbacks.”
Coach Damien Hardwick feels like all is right when the Tigers have a Rioli around Punt Rd.
“It is great. It’s always good to get the Rioli name back in. Especially when he goes up to the social club that is named after his grandfather,’’ he said.
“It is very exciting for the kid. It is a great Richmond name and we are very pleased to have a relative of Maurice at our footy club.”
Rioli left the Tiwi Islands at 14 to play at Ballarat’s St Patrick’s College, impressing recruiters with his resilience by staying the course where others returned home.
He believes he can turn into a midfielder but Richmond believes his finishing around goal can see him making an impact as early as next year.
That MCG contest in October has already proved he can be a big-game player.
“It was pretty awesome, playing on the MCG on Grand Final day. It was the first time I had ever played on the MCG and it was the best game I have played,’’ he said.
“In the TAC Cup I played as a small forward but I didn’t get up the ground much. I wasn’t really alive.
“I got up onto the wing and midfield and I see myself playing midfield but also kicking goals.
“I was happy with my performance and it was on Grand Final day and we got the win. To top things off I watched the Hawks play and my uncle got a Norm Smith.”
Richmond draftee Oleg Markov, son of pole vault world champion Dmitri Markov, was handed the no. 31 jumper.
Nathan Broad, the 22-year-old defender from Swan Districts who could play AFL next year, will wear no. 35.
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/subscribe/news/1/index.html?sourceCode=HSWEB_MRE170_a&mode=premium&dest=http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/daniel-rioli-to-wear-number-17-at-richmond-the-same-number-great-uncle-maurice-wore-at-the-tigers/news-story/63b3252d8e962b8f8b7f2d52128eca55&memtype=anonymous
