‘Free fall’ Tigers never thought would come as Dimma responds to ‘sinking ship’ claimDylan Bolch
Fox Sports
May 21st, 2024 Richmond’s 119-point loss to the Lions in round ten put a full stop on things.
The Richmond dynasty is over.
With a crippling injury list continuing to mount, coach Adem Yze’s first year as senior coach has certainly had its challenges.
“These are the grimmest times, aren’t they?” AFL360 co-host Gerarad Whateley said on the show.
Richmond’s injury list currently has 18 names on it, meaning Yze might even need to name an injured player as an emergency this week with the side reaching all-time lows on that front.
“This is free fall, this represents the hardest phase, they had plotted not to be this team in the aftermath of the dynasty, but they now very much are,” Whateley said.
Former Richmond head coach Damien Hardwick, who is now at the helm of the Gold Coast Suns said he watched on with a heavy heart as the Tigers suffered the ninth biggest loss in their history.
“Yeah, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t (have a heavy heart),” he said.
“I watched the game, it’s a challenge, I’ve got a lot of people there that I love and admire.
“They’re one arm behind their back at the moment, but Adem’s a great coach and is going to take them to special places.
“What we have to realise is they’ve got half their side on the sideline.”
Superstar key forward Tom Lynch has not been sighted since round four as he deals with a serious hamstring injury, while gun midfielders Tim Taranto and Jacob Hopper have also missed big chunks of football in 2024.
“They’ve got some challenges, what I do know, the second half of the year when they get those players back, look out, they’re going to be hard to beat,” Hardwick said.
Despite delivering a club starved of success three flags, does Hardwick feel as though he jumped off a sinking ship and left the club to languish?
“Yes and no. The reality is, I took over a club that was very similar.
“When people move aside or coaches move on, there is going to be a rebuilding process because a new coach is going to come in with a different game plan, different player requirements different staffing requirements – it takes time.”
Outside of a surprise victory against ladder-leaders Sydney, the Tigers haven’t won a game in 2024 to sit 1-9 and 17th on the ladder.
“Our leaders are obviously really disappointed,” Yze said in his post-match press conference.
“We’ll expect to review the game really honestly and obviously rectify some of those things and put on a better performance.”
But half-back Daniel Rioli said the club had “pushed it aside” and had instead turned focus on their Dreamtime clash against Essendon this week.
“It’s the battle to establish standards under the new coach and there were mild contradictions,” Whateley said.
“I thought he was going to have a real deep dive and then for Dan Rioli to come out and say he pushed it to the side, clearly, they’ve had a rethink since the game and said ‘right, are we going to pour over this game like he did the week before?’,” AFL360 co-host Mark Robinson replied.
“If you keep reinforce the negative you live in the negative, sometimes you’ve got to say, ‘get it out, we’ve got Dreamtime this week and we’re going to celebrate the night, the game and our people’.”
Defender Nathan Broad said it was up to himself and the other leaders to help the “proud” club get back on the winners list.
“Fundamentals are letting us down… it’s up to myself and other leaders to fast-track these kids and train it,” Broad said.
“We’ve got to get down to work, we’re in a tough spot but we need to help these kids coming through.
“I feel for our fans at the moment and Yze but we’ll get to work and hopefully improve.”
https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/teams/richmond-tigers/grimmest-times-injuryriddled-tigers-in-free-fall-but-dimma-says-dont-give-up-hope/news-story/faa1adfde0a319293e71b608995b8b70
