VFL Report: Round 1By Richmond Media
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Richmond VFL coach Steve Morris provides a summary of how the Tigers’ players performed in last Saturday's Round 1 win over Gold Coast at People First Stadium.
Kane McAuliffe (31 disposals, 14 contested possessions, seven inside-50s, six clearances, one goal)"Had an outstanding game as an inside midfielder and drove the ball inside 50 on a number of occasions. He used the ball well on the day and hit the scoreboard."
Tyler Sonsie (30 disposals, seven marks, six inside-50s, one goal)"Found a lot of the ball. He probably didn't have his best day from a ball use point of view, but he will be better for the run. It's great to see him back into footy and finding the ball with ease straight away."
Chad Harris (26 disposals, 10 intercept possessions, seven rebound-50s, four inside-50s, one goal)
"Was a standout player on the ground and he used the ball incredibly well. He had a team-high 10 intercept possessions and his leadership is really important for us down back."
Lachlan Street (26 disposals, six marks, four clearances)"Had a solid game. He turned the ball over a few few times which hurt us, but he was also able to win the ball and send us forward from mid-stoppage consistently throughout the day."
Hugo Ralphsmith (25 disposals, nine marks, four rebound-50s)"He's in fantastic form, he's strung a great month together. He's using the ball really well and his run and carry off half-back is really eye catching. His defensive work has improved immensely also."
Sam Naismith (24 disposals, nine clearances, 31 hit-outs, one goal)"He was fantastic in the ruck, he kicked one of the better goals that you'll see from a ruckman. He had a game-high nine clearances and was a standout on the day."
Austin Johnson (23 disposals, four marks, four inside-50s, one goal)"Had a fantastic day at the office. He used the ball extremely well, going at 97% efficiency from 23 touches, and finished off with a goal as well."
Mutaz El Nour (20 disposals, seven rebound-50s, six marks)"Had another fantastic game. He's in rare form at the moment, both offensively and defensively, and continues to will the ball back for us in our back half."
Kaleb Smith (19 disposals, five marks, three clearances)"Had his best game for the club. It's great to see him growing in confidence each and every week. He's very diligent at the club working at his game, and he's reaping the rewards from that."
Nicholas Guiney (14 disposals, five rebound-50s, four marks)"One of the better players on the ground on the day. The amount of times he was able to nullify an opposition inside 50 entry, and get the ball back going back our way, was incredible. It's great to see him back playing VFL footy after 18 months off the scene."
Lachlan Wilson (14 disposals, six clearances, three tackles)"Played low game time but had a huge impact. His ability to recognise threats off the ball is really helping us as a team, and his clever ball use is also a standout."
Jed Feneley (13 disposals, four rebound-50s, three marks)"He was able to win the ball back nine times on debut. I felt as though he had a few first-game jitters, but, certainly an extremely pleasing debut performance from Jed."
Noah Cumberland (11 disposals, four inside-50s, two marks, two goals)"Noah has played a couple of very different games over the last couple of weeks. But, the aspect of his game that has really stood out has been his defensive pressure and that's something that we really value and are definitely looking to see him continue to build. It was good to see him getting a little bit of reward on the scoreboard on the weekend, he's trending in a really positive direction.
Harrison White (11 disposals, five marks, four inside-50s)"Used his work-rate to effect, to get up and around the footy. He's a very classy player who probably didn't show his absolute best ball use on the weekend. But, he's a player that can certainly help us moving forward."
Will Bravo (11 disposals, two marks, two inside-50s)"With the changes that we were forced to make to our team late, Will was forced to play on a wing. He's been a really effective inside mid for us throughout the pre-season, and I think it'll hold him in good stead being able to learn a new position."
Tom Brindley (10 disposals, three marks)"He was a bit of a 'jack of all trades' on the weekend, as he has been known to be over the last couple of seasons. I think he's building into the season nicely, but he can also have a bigger impact on the game than he did on the weekend, which is exciting."
Jacob Koschitzke (nine disposals, three marks, one goal)"Seemed to be outnumbered all day, but never gave up. I thought his leadership was important for our young group, and he kicked an important goal for us late in the game to seal the deal."
Mohammed Yassine (eight disposals, two marks)
"Probably didn't have the offensive impact that we know he can have on the weekend. But, he was incredible on defence. Some of his efforts we are really proud of, and he helped our defenders win the ball back for us in the back half."
Nicholas Girolami (seven disposals, four rebound-50s, one mark)
"Nick's been building his game over the course of the pre-season, and he's a player that we know has immense talent and is new to an elite pathway. He showed exactly what he can do on the weekend playing on Sam Day, an experienced AFL footballer, and he certainly took the points. It gives us great confidence moving forward that he's trending in the right direction."
Cam Olden (six disposals, one mark)"Cam had one of the quieter games that we've seen him play in VFL footy. It's exciting that we were able to hit the scoreboard as heavily as we did without him having a big influence on the game. We know that he will certainly bounce back in the coming weeks."
Steely Green (four disposals, two marks)
"Steely had a much bigger impact on the game than the stat sheet suggests. His forward pressure was immense. He could have easily finished with three or four goals. If he continues to stick to his role, I'm sure that the reward for him is just around the corner."
Archie May (four disposals, one mark, two goals)"It's a real learning period for Archie, who was able to hit the scoreboard with a couple of goals. But, he's getting better and better in terms of our system each and every week. Talls take time, and we're extremely excited about what he can do in the future."
Samson Ryan (three disposals, 10 hit-outs, one goal)"Played very limited game time, both in the ruck and up forward. He's another that probably could have kicked three or four himself, even despite the limited game time, but I'm sure he'll get more opportunities in the coming weeks."
https://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/1516029/vfl-report-round-1
