St Kilda Saints haunt Richmond Tigers' hopes of a top-four finishBrad Elborough
The Age
21 August 2017Richmond's form since round 10 has been as good as anyone's, but one side remains in the way of the Tigers finishing in the top four and having a genuine tilt at winning the premiership – St Kilda.
The equation is simple – beat the Saints, and Richmond will finish third or fourth. Lose and they could, and are likely to, drop as low as sixth.
Damien Hardwick has his side firing, though. The 104-point hiding they gave Fremantle in Perth on Sunday was the latest impressive performance, and caps a solid run of recent results.
It may have only been against the struggling Dockers, but Tigers have a 9-3 record since losing four games in a row between rounds six and nine, which sparked a slide to seventh on the table. Included in those results were to losses to Geelong by 14 points at Simonds Stadium, and to a surging Sydney Swans by nine points at the SCG.
But the 67-point loss to St Kilda in round 16 still haunts the Tigers. And it's the Saints who stand in the way of the Tigers earning a September double chance and having a red-hot crack at winning their first flag since 1980.
The Richmond side that beat the Dockers on Sunday was not much different to the one that lost to the Saints six weeks ago. Six players travelled to Perth who weren't at Etihad Stadium that day.
Mathematically, the Saints can still play finals, but everything needs to fall their way. West Coast and Essendon would both need to lose against Adelaide and Fremantle respectively – in heavily one-sided games – and they'd need to beat the Tigers.
Regardless, Hardwick knows that the Saints will be out to make what could be Nick Riewoldt's final game one to remember.
"We still have St Kilda, who thoroughly embarrassed us the last time we played," he said. "We have to make sure we come to play.
"They are certainly playing for a legend of the game and a legend of the footy club in Nick Riewoldt, so it's going to be a hell of a game.
"I'm looking forward to seeing how the boys respond. We were really disappointed with how we performed; it was a big game for the Riewoldt family and we let ourselves down, so it's a really big challenge for us."
Hardwick has some tough decisions to make in the coming few weeks.
Toby Nankervis is currently holding down the ruck by himself, but will likely need some assistance during the finals. Midfielder Shaun Grigg ended up taking on the centre bounce for Richmond against Fremantle on Sunday.
Shaun Hampson and Ben Griffiths have started their respective comebacks from injury through the VFL and will have to come under consideration for a call-up. There are several players getting plenty of the ball in the twos trying to remind the coach of their credentials.
While Hardwick admits that having a healthy list provides good selection issues, he knows the pressure is on him to get it right, with a top-four finish crucial.
"It's a massive advantage, no doubt. You look at the history of the game and the Bulldogs surprised everyone last year from seventh, but the vast majority of premiership winners have come from the top four," he said. "You increase your chances of winning it.
"But we have a really big game next week to focus on. If we get our process right we've got a good chance of winning; if we get ahead of ourselves, we'll get beaten."
http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/st-kilda-saints-haunt-richmond-tigers-hopes-of-a-topfour-finish-20170820-gy0fur.html
