David King breaks down key factor in Tigers versus Eagles clashBy SEN
12 Aug 2019Richmond and West Coast meet this weekend in a battle between fourth and third and David King is fascinated by what the Tigers will do with Jeremy McGovern.
The Eagles defender is once again in All-Australian form and King wonders whether the Tigers might try something out of the box to quell his influence.
“What will Richmond do with Jeremy McGovern?” King asked on SEN’s Whateley.
“In the last five weeks, he’s the number one intercepts to score player in the competition. He’s won it back 46 times and from those 46 occasions, seven goals five.
“It’s a massive ratio. Every four times he intercepts, often deep in defensive 50, they score.
“I think it’s time for someone to look at flat out tagging McGovern. Do not try and lead on him. Do not try and outsmart him or out-read him. I don’t care who he’s trying to pick up. If he wants to stand in the dominant position, you stand next to him.
“I wonder whether Damien (Hardwick) would have a look at that. When you see what he did in the Grand Final and across the last three years, you can’t just keep going the same way. It hasn’t worked.
“Richmond don’t necessarily need to do that. They’ll probably just say we’ll back our system. We don’t need to look at this.
“Can you afford to have a look at something in Round 22? Even if it fails you say ah well, not a problem, see you in three weeks. I just wonder whether they could have that conversation.
“Everyone is talking about Richmond. No one is talking about West Coast. Not in the same way. They’ve been in raptures about the way Richmond has corrected since the bye.”
The Eagles defeated the Tigers at Optus Stadium by 47 points when they last met in Round 9 of last year.
https://www.sen.com.au/news/2019/08/12/king-breaks-down-key-factor-in-tigers-versus-eagles-clash/