Tigers purring for round oneMichael Gleeson
The Age
19 March 2018Bachar Houli has no doubt he is ready.
On Sunday he did all he could to turn the head of coach Daien Hardwick that while he might not have had the match practice, the running defender is ready to play round one. Houli was sharp, clean and looked fit in the brief training run at Punt Road Oval after recovering from Achilles and calf trouble.
The Tigers will be without Dion Presia and Daniel Rioli, with Nathan Broad suspended.
Kane Lambert did not join in with the main group at training, instead running with Dion Prestia on the boundary, but football manager Neil Balme said he was in no doubt for Thursday night's blockbuster season opener against Carlton.
"The only one (with some doubt) is Bachar Houli, who has not done that much but he wants to play and we want him to play - the discussion will be around whether we think he has done enough," Balme said.
The Tigers have Shai Bolton as an obvious like-for-like replacement for Rioli ready to come into the side. He has played in the JLT series and appears a probable inclusion for Thursday.
With Prestia out the Tigers will look to bring in a midfielder with Corey Ellis playing there during the pre-season. Anthony Miles and Sam Lloyd have also been used through the midfield in the pre-season.
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/afl/richmond-tigers/tigers-purring-for-round-one-20180318-p4z4yy.html---------------------------------------------
Running defenders Jayden Short and Reece Conca are jockeying to replace Houli and Broad, while small forward Shai Bolton is expected to take Rioli's place in attack after an impressive pre-season.
Inside midfielder Anthony Miles is a frontrunner to replace Prestia if the premiership star is ruled out, while Sam Lloyd has trained in the midfield and has also mounted a strong selection case.
http://www.afl.com.au/news/2018-03-18/key-tigers-in-fitness-race-to-face-blues
