No big stars, no worries for Tigers as they down Port in thrillerSteve Barrett
The Age
14 April 2019No Martin, Cotchin, Riewoldt, Rance – no worries.
It wasn’t quite as simple as that – not by a long stretch – but undermanned Richmond breathed renewed life into their season and showed glimpses of a bright long-term future with their mighty, nail-biting victory over Port Adelaide.
Tom Lynch slotted 6.2 from his nine kicks, including the match-winning sealer with 40 seconds remaining to cap a thrilling fourth quarter during which the lead changed hands five times.
Liam Baker and Tom Lynch of the Richmond Tigers celebrate a goal.Credit:AAP
A long evening looked on the cards when the Tigers, minus their famed ‘‘big four’’ – Dustin Martin (suspended), Trent Cotchin (hamstring), Jack Riewoldt (wrist) and Alex Rance (knee) – were dictated to by the Power for the majority of the opening half before fighting back in the third and displaying poise in the fourth.
Lynch’s contentious double goal inside a minute early in the third term gave Richmond the lead and enraged the home crowd.
As he was running into an open goal to reduce the margin to three points, Lynch was simultaneously shoved in the back by Ryan Burton and awarded a free from the goal square, which he converted with ease in what Fox Footy’s Anthony Hudson described as a ‘‘dirty 30 seconds for Port Adelaide’’.
Earlier, the Power had the majority of the footy and held an eight-point quarter-time lead as Richmond – aside from Josh Caddy who kicked two straight for the term – let themselves down with errant goalkicking.
Port moved ahead by 14 points when Brad Ebert converted from outside 50 for his second major midway through the second stanza and the Tigers looked in a spot of bother.
Lynch’s double strike turned the tide and when he crumbed his fourth, Richmond’s buffer was 15 points.
Sam Gray stemmed the tide with his third goal, on the back of a horror blunder in defence from Kamdyn McIntosh, and when Burton slotted a wonderful goal, hugging the boundary from outside 50, the Tigers’ lead was suddenly three points.
Lynch’s fifth – he had 5.2 from his first seven touches – came courtesy of a 50-metre penalty against Dan Houston early in a gripping fourth quarter which saw Port hit back again and recaptured the lead when Willem Drew and Ollie Wines registered back-to-back goals.
Richmond have defeated Port Adelaide 99-92 in a thrilling match at Adelaide Oval. Tom Lynch booted six goals in a best-afield performance.
McIntosh’s stunning left foot snap gave the Tigers the edge again before Xavier Duursma missed a set shot after a stunning contested grab and Lynch provided the icing on a sweet cake.
With the season four matches old, Brad Ebert already has notched as many goals (six) as he booted for the whole of last year.
With rejuvenated Tom Rockliff and Travis Boak back to their best this year in the midfield, Ebert, who is nearing the 250-game mark, has been reinvented as a forward — and he has thrived.
While Ebert’s versatility has been on show in 2019, his courage has never been questioned.
Midway through the second stanza Ebert was wobbly on his feet after being crunched in the middle of the ground by Nankervis, against whom he concedes 10cm and 12kg.
After shaking off the big hit, Ebert shook off the big hit and, on the back of a gut run, slotted a fine goal from 55 metres.
If it feels like it’s been a long time since Richmond last took the field without a single member of their renowned ‘‘Big Four’’, that’s because it is.
It was more than 11 years and exactly 250 games ago — in Round 3, 2008 — when the Tigers, then coached by Terry Wallace, succumbed to Mick Malthouse’s Collingwood by 44 points.
At the time Riewoldt was still establishing himself in Matthew Richardson’s imposing shadow, Cotchin was a month away from debuting, Rance was languishing in Coburg’s reserves and Martin was a 16-year-old TAC Cup prodigy with the Bendigo Pioneers.
Martin, Cotchin, Riewoldt and Rance have claimed eight of Richmond’s last nine best-and-fairests and Riewoldt has led the club’s goalkicking for the past nine years' straight.
While Rance’s season is over, the return of the other three is crucial to the Tigers’ flickering premiership hopes, despite the stunning performance from Richmond’s youngsters on Saturday.
With adversity comes opportunity – and teenager Jack Ross seized his with both hands in a sizzling AFL debut.
Unlikely to have earned a berth had the Tigers been at full strength, 18-year-old ‘‘man-child’’ Ross was magnificent in the engine room.
His 10 second-quarter touches and plethora of bullocking clearances helped turned the tide Richmond’s way.
Excitement machine Shai Bolton (playing his 10th game), similarly stepped up to the plate, while solid contributions from athletic Noah Balta (third game), speedy small forward Liam Baker (fourth game) and composed defender Sydney Stack (second game) suggests the future remains bright.
RICHMOND 2.5 6.8 11.8 15.9 (99)
PORT ADELAIDE 4.1 7.3 11.6 14.8 (92)
BEST
Port Adelaide: Rockliff, Houston, Boak, Ebert, R. Gray, Lycett;
Richmond: Lynch, Ellis, Ross, Edwards, Bolton, Grimes.
Umpires: Meredith, Fleer, Gavine
Crowd: 38,864 at Adelaide Oval
Votes:Tom Lynch (Richmond) 8
Tom Rockliff (Port) 8
Brandon Ellis (Richmond) 8
Jack Ross (Richmond) 7
Shane Edwards (Richmond) 7
https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/no-big-stars-no-worries-for-tigers-as-they-down-port-in-thriller-20190413-p51dwi.html
