Cotchin hasn’t thought about finals failureRebecca Williams,
Herald Sun
December 3, 2018RICHMOND captain Trent Cotchin says he has refused to dwell on the Tigers’ heartbreaking preliminary finals loss to Collingwood this off-season.
As the full Richmond list returned for the official start to their 2019 campaign at Punt Rd today, Cotchin said he had moved on quickly from the loss that ended the Tigers’ premiership defence.
“Until just then I hadn’t really through about it,’’ Cotchin said when asked about how much the loss still lingered today.
“I think it’s the power of acceptance. It was what it was and there’s not much I can do about it now.
“We didn’t play really well on that night and Collingwood played exceptionally well, obviously didn’t get the bickies in the big one.
“But we’re just really excited about the way that we prepared and played for the majority of last year was an improvement on the year prior. We didn’t quite get the reward that we wanted to and we’ll be striving to go again throughout this pre-season along with some fresh faces.’’
Cotchin said he had not intended to watch the Grand Final after the Tigers’ preliminary final exit, but couldn’t help himself on a day out with his children.
“I actually watched it on the Telstra AFL app while I was at the Melbourne Show with the kids,’’ Cotchin said.
“I wasn’t going to watch it, but the reality was the way it panned out wasn’t exactly how we had planned or prepared for, the better team won on the night and went on to play in the Grand Final and it was a fantastic Grand Final and a great spectacle for the game.’’
Cotchin said he was excited to welcome star recruit Tom Lynch to the club, but would not speculate on what the big forward’s arrival meant for the Tigers’ game plan.
“I wouldn’t say it’s the end (of the way team played), that’s probably something you have to speak to Dimma (coach Damien Hardwick) about more so than me,’’ Cotchin said.
“We’re just excited about Lynchy, just like Mav Weller, contributing exactly what we expect of them and that’s to play their role as we’ve spoken about over the past few years. We’re just excited about what other strengths they bring to our formula.
“They say change is as good as a holiday. As I said, without actually seeing it and training and seeing how the system works it’s hard to comment on.
“But I’m really excited to see what he brings, but also the way our group that are structured around him down there can help his game as well.’’
Cotchin said he was refreshed to launch into pre-season training after spending a month in the United States on holiday during his off-season break.
And he said his close mate Dustin Martin had returned to the club in great shape.
“He looks good, he’s really excited to be back. He actually came back last week to do a session with the boys a little bit earlier,’’ Cotchin said.
“He spent a little bit of time in the States and he’s just excited to sink his teeth into another season. Obviously, everyone will be talking about the way that he finished off the year, but he had another fantastic season in 2018 and he will go again.’’
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