VFL and development coach, Craig McRae provides a summary of how the Tigers’ players performed in last Saturday’s Round 4 win over Casey at the Casey Fields.
Shai Bolton25 disposals, 11 tackles, eight clearances, eight inside 50s & one goal
“It was really pleasing for him to come back from AFL football with his attitude, and he returned above the level. His defensive pressure is really standing out. He looks ready to bounce back into AFL opportunity.”
Patrick Naish25 disposals, 14 handball receives, seven inside-50s & three clearances
“Continues his great form, over a number of weeks now he’s been among the high possession winners for us. Defensively he’s been really impacting, his contest work has been really standing out, which is really pleasing to see.”
Connor Menadue23 disposals, four marks, five rebound-50s and threes inside-50s
“Is another one who returned from AFL, playing really good footy. He came back and looks a really different player at VFL level. His leadership really stood out at different moments of the game. Again another one looking to go back into the AFL.”
Jacob Townsend19 disposals, four marks, nine tackles, five clearances, five inside-50s & one goal
“His pressure in the contest has been outstanding. He’s really hard around the ball, his tackle numbers are high, with nine for the day. He kicked a great goal for us at a critical part of the game. His leadership is something that’s taken a step forward this year.”
Riley Collier-Dawkins18 disposals, 15 contested possessions, seven tackles & four clearances
“Looks a real promising player for us. A big, strong inside midfielder. A lot of handballs on the day - 18 disposals on the day, 12 of those handballs - high tackle numbers again with seven. His ability to break the game open in the third quarter was critical to the outcome. He’s playing some great footy.”
Derek Eggmolesse-Smith17 disposals, six handball receives & three rebound-50s
“Playing off half-back, he looks like he’s a promising type with his left foot, and uses the ball really well, runs and carries. It wasn’t a great day for the run-and-carry, but his critical one-on-one wins stood out.”
Ivan Soldo14 disposals, six tackles, 43 hit-outs, eight clearances & four inside-50s
“Dominated the hit-outs and had six tackles, so his work around the contest was really good, and it was really pleasing late in the game where he showed some leadership. He controlled some structures around the stoppages which he hadn’t been doing in previous years. That shows his growth as a player. He had some nice intercept marks late in the game also.”
Fraser Turner12 disposals, three marks & two clearances
“Huge work-rate for a young player. I think he racked up 16kms on the GPS, which is phenomenal running on the day from a wing. He’s learning structural-wise, but he’s a promising player in the making.”
Luke English10 disposals, four tackles & two clearances
“Played a little bit of forward and a little bit of midfield. A low possession rate, but certainly around the contest, getting the game going our way was something that really stood out; particularly in the last quarter when we needed some fresh legs and drive.”
Dan Butler10 disposals, five handball receives, four tackles, five inside-50s & one goal
“The game was difficult to impose his speed on, but when he did, he certainly changed the way the game was being played. He found some space a couple of times and really gave some drive by running and carrying the ball. He kicked a nice goal from follow-up contest-to-contest work and he looks ready for AFL opportunity when it presents.”
Mabior CholNine disposals, four marks, two goals & four tackles
“A difficult game for talls. It was pleasing again - as it’s been in recent weeks - he may not be having a good quarter, but he’s finding a way to impact the game, be it in the air or on the ground. He finished the game with two goals which is a great example of consistency week-to-week.”
Callum Coleman-JonesNine disposals, seven hit-outs & seven tackles
“Limited impact in the game, but it was pleasing for him to get seven tackles on the day, which is a really good result for our big guys to impact the game that way. It was a difficult day aerially and he’ll learn a lot from the day.”
Callum MooreEight disposals, three tackles, three spoils & one goal
“As mentioned previously about the talls, it was so windy and difficult to judge the flight and the aerial contest, but he kicked 1.2 and could have quite easily finished with three goals. When we only kicked seven goals for the game, he could have had a big impact on the result. But it was pleasing to see him show his strengths, particularly at ground level.”
Maverick WellerSix disposals, one tackle & one clearance
“Played the first half and hurt his back and didn’t take any further part in the game.”
Jake AartsFive disposals, one goal, three spoils & two tackles
“Only low possession rate, but he had high impact in the game, particularly his contest work. He kicked a critical, match-winning goal in a really clutch moment. He took his chance from 35 meters out when others weren’t on the day with the breeze, which ended up being the match-winner. His contest work looks ready for AFL opportunity.”
Ryan GarthwaiteFour disposals, 12 spoils & three marks
“Had 12 spoils on the day, which was a team-high. Anything that came in his direction, he won his one-on-ones. He offered terrific support in our mechanics behind the ball - he’s such a great leader in that regard.”
Ben MillerFour disposals, three spoils & three rebound-50s
“Playing a little bit of forward and a little bit of back at the moment, we’re trying to work on his versatility as a player. Another tall player who struggled to impact aerially, but it’s a work in progress.”
Jack Graham“Unfortunately Jack hurt himself in the warm-up and was done after five minutes.”
https://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/2019-04-30/vfl-report-round-4
