Media articles and stats: Top-four Tigers eclipse Suns

[one-eyed]

Match report: Top-four Tigers eclipse Suns

afl.com.au
29 July 2017

AT TIMES it wasn't pretty, but Richmond has kept its charge towards the top-four rolling with a 33-point win over a gutsy Gold Coast at Metricon Stadium on Saturday night.

After an indifferent start, the Tigers kicked five goals to one in the second quarter and were rarely troubled in their 14.14 (98) to 10.5 (65) victory.

The win moved Richmond back into fourth spot after Port Adelaide momentarily leapfrogged it with a remarkable last-gasp victory over St Kilda earlier in the evening.

The stars again shone for the Tigers, with Dustin Martin (34 disposals) and skipper Trent Cotchin (25) leading the way, while Brandon Ellis (27 and three goals assists) was also terrific.

Without star forward Jack Riewoldt (eye), the Tigers were able to fashion a winning score, with ruckman Toby Nankervis and livewire forwards Daniel Rioli and Jason Castagna each kicking three goals.

Rioli kicked his three in the first quarter, Nankervis his three in the second, and Castagna his three after half-time following some early game kicking yips.

Gold Coast had a horror night on the injury front and did well to be as competitive as it was.

Already missing co-captain Steven May, the Suns lost Gary Ablett (hamstring) prior to the game and Callum Ah Chee (shoulder), Alex Sexton (face) and Ben Ainsworth (knee) by early in the third term.

They finished with just one fresh body on the bench but battled hard for under-siege coach Rodney Eade.

Aaron Hall was tireless and finished with 40 disposals, while Pearce Hanley (30) was back near his efficient best.

Tom Lynch was beaten by Alex Rance in the first half, but worked hard to finish with three goals.

For the Tigers, it was a workmanlike victory in Shane Edwards' 200th game.

Martin wasn't at his destructive best, but was still the finest player afield, with seven clearances and a goal to go with his touches.

His contested mark and goal with Adam Saad draped all over him in the third quarter summed up the difference between the teams.

In the game-winning second quarter, Richmond completely dominated, winning the disposals (102-74), contested possessions (41-31) and clearances (12-4) to set up a 23-point lead at the main break.

More to come

GOLD COAST     4.2     5.3       8.4       10.5      (65)                 
RICHMOND        3.4     8.8     11.11     14.14     (98)           

GOALS
Gold Coast: Lynch 3, Miller, Rosa, Wright, Saad, Fiorini, Martin, Lonergan
Richmond: Rioli 3, Nankervis 3, Castagna 3, Grigg, Caddy, Cotchin, Martin, C. Ellis

BEST
Gold Coast: Hanley, Hall, Swallow, Martin, Fiorini, Witts
Richmond: Martin, Cotchin, Rance, Rioli, B. Ellis, Miles

INJURIES
Gold Coast: Ah Chee (shoulder), Sexton (jaw), Ainsworth (knee)
Richmond: Nil

Reports: Nil

Umpires: Donlon, Gavine, Fleer

Official crowd: 16,207 at Metricon Stadium

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2017-07-29/match-report-topfour-tigers-ease-past-suns

[one-eyed]

Dustin Martin stars again as Richmond has too much class for Gold Coast

GREG DAVIS,
The Courier-Mail
30 July 2017

IT was a case of “No Jack Riewoldt, no problem” for Richmond as its remaining superstars played well enough for long enough to hold off an undermanned Gold Coast at Metricon Stadium.

Riewoldt (eye) missed the ho-hum affair but Tigers’ A-graders Dustin Martin, Alex Rance and Trent Cotchin displayed their pedigree to lift Richmond to a 33-point win for their 12th victory of 2017.

Martin’s influence grew the longer the game went and finished with 34 touches, seven clearances and a goal.

Rance gave Suns co-captain and key forward Tom Lynch a bath for most of the night while Cotchin accumulated 25 disposals and a goal.

To Lynch’s credit, he finished with three goals after limited and diabolic service from his midfield.

Throw in a dazzling cameo from Daniel Rioli (three goals and three scoring assists) and the Tigers were just too classy for the ravaged home side with a rampant second quarter setting up the win.

The already injury-hit Suns finished the game with just one fit man on the bench after Gary Ablett was a late withdrawal with hamstring soreness.

Alex Sexton (concussion) and Callum Ah Chee (shoulder) left the game in the second term while Ben Ainsworth (knee) was out of action midway through the third quarter, robbing the Suns of precious run.

Suns coach Rodney Eade said his side battled manfully given the extent of the casualty ward which also included Jarrod Witts (foot) and Brayden Fiorini (hamstring) who played out the final quarter.

“It was extremely brave. I was really proud of the effort,’’ he said.

“We kept ourselves in the game’’.

He said co-captain Steve May was almost “certain” to make the trip west next weekend for the clash with Fremantle while he was “pretty confident’’ that Ablett would also be available.

Aaron Hall had 40 disposals but Pearce Hanley (30 touches) was the Gold Coast’s best.

The Suns remarkably closed to just 12 points from Richmond after registering the first two goals of the third quarter but the Tigers rediscovered their mojo and kicked away to a 25-point buffer by the last change.

Richmond led by 23 points at halftime and the margin flattered the Suns.

The Tigers tore the home side to shreds in the second term booting five goals to one but they should have kicked more with Jason Castagna missing three shots in the quarter.

Resting ruckman Toby Nankervis had no such dramas in front of the goals, kicking three majors for the visitors who ramped up the defensive pressure and also got on top in the clearances (12-4 for the quarter) and contested possessions (41-31).

Richmond kicked two goals in the first two minutes of the second term to set the tone as the Gold Coast’s slender four-point buffer was blown out of the water.

The Tigers still had some forgettable moments as they played to the level of their opposition but had too much class when it counted.

Rioli was all class in the opening quarter for Richmond, kicking three silky goals to keep the Tigers in the hunt after the Suns put three of the first four goals of the match on the board.

Richmond coach Damein Hardwick said the Tigers failed to make the most of the opportunities and “butchered’’ the ball at times to keep the Suns in the hunt.

“They gave us some trouble. They are a formidable side up here,’’ he said.

“They challenged us...we weren’t quite at our best today...our best footy is still head of us.’’

http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/afl/more-news/dustin-martin-stars-again-as-richmond-has-too-much-class-for-gold-coast/news-story/557c4321fb4f4b2f44d1598a7e930ddd

[one-eyed]

Rioli spices up the Richmond Tigers' Dustin Martin show

Andrew Stafford
The Age
30 July 2017

Jack Riewoldt out with a poked eye. Gary Ablett, still on the sidelines with a pinged hamstring. Other than the prospect of seeing Dustin Martin add to his Brownlow vote tally, it was hard to think of too many reasons to get excited about watching Richmond take on a flagging Gold Coast Suns. Thank heavens, then, for Daniel Rioli.

Even a Rioli cameo makes a game worth the price of admission. Cat-like in his balance and agility, he kicked all three Tigers goals for the first quarter: one from near the paint of the 50 arc and boundary that never looked like missing, the second a classic bit of roving, the third marked from a perfect Shane Edwards pass.

At that point, he was pretty much keeping Richmond in a game they were expected, and needed to win to hold their place in the top four. They achieved that end by 33 points – helped by a hefty Suns injury toll – and Martin probably chalked up another three Brownlow votes, but Rioli's burst aside, it was an affair to forget.

The Suns charged out of the blocks, Touk Miller on the board within a minute from a Jack Martin clearance, then Martin dished off a second assist to Matt Rosa within the first two minutes. Rioli replied, then Ben Ainsworth speared a kick on to the chest of Peter Wright for the Suns' third. It was fast, open play, and it suited the Suns.

Martin started slowly – David Swallow was the only player strong enough to man him at stoppages, and Adam Saad the only one quick enough to go with him when he went forward – but no one could do the job alone, and with Trent Cotchin and Anthony Miles, the Tigers gained total control around the stoppages in the second quarter.

Rioli was involved in Richmond's fourth goal, too, but the rest of the first half belonged to a very different footballer, Toby Nankervis, who kicked three for the quarter while Jason Castagna did the opposite, missing three that could have finished the contest at half-time.

It helped keep the Suns in the game, even with two players already in the rooms – Callum Ah Chee having his already strapped shoulder crunched, and the courageous Alex Sexton having his jaw assessed after being met by two players in a head-on collision.

Brayden Fiorini and Jack Martin closed the gap to a couple of goals, but the Suns suffered a fatal blow when  Ainsworth joined his teammates on the bench with ice on his knee. Tom Lynch gave them a last gasp, and he never gave up against Alex Rance, but late goals to Dustin Martin and Castagna settled the issue.

That said, the margin was only 25 at the last change: it was lack of personnel, more than the margin, that dictated the result as the depleted Suns were run off their feet. But the Tigers don't really put teams away, as their percentage of 108 suggests.

That's a question mark over the Tigers that they'll first have to answer against Geelong, who they play for the first time in Round 21. Should they hold on to their place in the top four, they could very easily face Adelaide first up, who spanked them by 76 points back in Round 6.

But they keep getting the job done, and if they'd won another couple of close ones in this most quixotic of seasons, they'd be fighting with Adelaide for that top spot. If nothing else, they're poised to go deeper into September than they have in a very long time.

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-match-report/rioli-spices-up-the-richmond-tigers-dustin-martin-show-20170729-gxlixz.html