Off-season signing Robbie Tarrant made a strong impact in his first game back in the senior side since round six, after spending the past fortnight in the VFL.
Hardwick conceded it has taken the 33-year-old time to learn Richmond's system, but praised the former North Melbourne defender's ability to play through hip pain.
"He is a really important player to us now, and moving forward. He is another tough guy; he had a bit of a hip complaint and he just wanted to keep playing. We started seeing what he could do tonight," Hardwick said.
"We've got to understand that players coming into systems – especially key forwards and key backs – are a little bit different to how we defend compared to his previous club.
"It was always going to take a little bit of time, but I thought he was really good tonight. Peter Wright is a match winner and he kept him to maybe one goal (Wright was held goalless)? I thought he was terrific."
Source: AFL website
