Media articles and stats - Tigers brought back to earth

[one-eyed]

Tigers brought back to earth
4:46:13 PM Sat 2 September, 2006
Jason Phelan
Exclusive to afl.com.au

RICHMOND: 1.1 2.6 7.8 12.13 (85)
WEST COAST: 5.8 10.12 21.13 26.17 (173)

GOALS -
Richmond: Stafford 3, J.Bowden 2, Richardson 2, Howat, Hyde, Johnson, Pettifer, Tambling
West Coast: LeCras 5, Armstrong 4, Lynch 4, Butler 3, Judd 3, Banfield, Cousins, Cox, Fletcher, Hunter, Rosa, Seaby

BEST -
Richmond: J.Bowden, Deledio, Raines, Roach, Stafford
West Coast: LeCras, Rosa, Stenglein, Judd, Cousins, Fletcher, Lynch, Armstrong, Butler

INJURIES - Richmond: Nil
West Coast: Staker (concussion)

CHANGES - Richmond: Krakouer (ankle) replaced in selected side by McGuane
West Coast: Nil

REPORTS - Nil
UMPIRES - Davis, Allen, Meredith
CROWD - 35,016 at the MCG

Richmond's late season winning run came to a shuddering halt at the MCG on Saturday as the Tigers were overwhelmed by minor premiers the West Coast Eagles by 88 points - 26.17 (173) to 12.13 (85).

Coming off three successive wins and looking to make a statement with a bold showing against the Eagles, the Tigers had no answer to the visitors who piled on 11 goals in the third term - the second-best one-quarter return in the club's history.

West Coast's 26.17 was its highest score ever against the Tigers, its highest total score for the season and its highest-ever score at the MCG.

Andrew Raines was the top possession winner for the Tigers with 26 disposals and Greg Stafford finished his career with three goals. Brett Deledio and Dean Polo were always handy with 25 and 21 disposals respectively, while Mark Chaffey was his usual busy self in defence in his final appearance in the yellow and black.

Chaffey and Stafford were fittingly chaired off after the match to wild applause from the Tiger faithful.

Terry Wallace had built up the match as a good test for his players and agreed that his young side was simply outclassed by a more polished, more experienced unit on the day.

"We just couldn't get our hands on the footy early in the game - they were just too fierce and too strong around the football," he said.

"I think it was 13 scoring shots to two in the first quarter and the damage could have been a lot worse; they sort of left us in the game there for probably the first 15 minutes where they just missed goal opportunities.

"We were hoping that at some stage we might be able to get our own game going, but they obviously came here on a mission and were very hungry and very determined to get the job done."

http://richmondfc.com.au/default.asp?pg=news&spg=display&articleid=294462

[one-eyed]

Eagles belt Tigers for minor premiership
02 September 2006   Herald-Sun
AAP

WEST Coast claimed the AFL minor premiership today with a 88-point belting of Richmond at the MCG.

But the Eagles had a scare late in the 26.17 (173) to 12.13 (85) win when captain Chris Judd limped off the field.

Judd appeared to hurt his groin in an attempted spoil.

The Brownlow Medallist was interviewed on television immediately after the game and swore ``on my mother's life'' that it was nothing worse than cramp.

The Eagles took control from the start and led 44 points at halftime, before adding an exclamation mark to an awesome performance with 11.1 in the third term.

It is West Coast's highest score against Richmond.

West Coast is now well-primed for the finals, with key players Daniel Kerr, David Wirrpanda, Ashley Hansen and Andrew Embley all to return from injury.

Mark LeCras, recalled to the side this week, enhanced his finals chances with five goals.

After a quiet start, Judd kicked three third-quarter goals and cut the Tigers apart through the midfield, while former skipper Ben Cousins racked up 30 touches.

The only other downside for West Coast today was Brent Staker's concussion in the third term after a heavy fall.

Young defender Matthew White worked hard for the Tigers and midfielder Tom Roach played a disciplined game on Michael Braun as he tries to keep his spot on the Richmond list.

But overall it was a woeful end to the season for Richmond, which had won its past three games.

Today was the retirement game for Tigers ruckman Greg Stafford and defender Mark Chaffey, plus there is growing speculation Andrew Kellaway might have played his last AFL match.

Stafford kicked the last two goals of the game, meaning Richmond avoided the embarrassment of being the first team since Fitzroy in 1996 to suffer four 100-point losses in one season.

http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/footy/common/story_page/0,8033,20337856%255E20322,00.html

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Team stats

Kicks       181 - 249
Marks      108 - 131
Handballs 153 - 174
Tackles     32 - 47
Hitouts      21 - 29
Frees        7 - 17

Individual stats

Player           K  H  D M HO T FF FA G B
A.Raines      13 13 26 5 0 0 0 1 0 0
B.Deledio     11 14 25 8 0 2 0 0 0 1
D.Polo         10 11 21 8 0 2 0 1 0 0
S.Tuck          9 12 21 2 2 5 0 1 0 0
J.Bowden    10 10 20 8 0 1 0 1 2 0
N.Foley         7 13 20 3 0 3 0 1 0 0
P.Bowden     10 9 19 8 0 1 0 0 0 0
R.Tambling    10 9 19 6 0 3 1 0 1 0
C.Howat        13 5 18 5 0 1 0 2 1 0
K.Pettifer       12 5 17 7 0 1 1 2 1 1
T.Simmonds  14 3 17 8 13 2 0 0 0 2
K.Johnson      9 6 15 2 0 2 1 0 1 0
G.Tivendale     7 8 15 5 0 0 0 1 0 0
M.White          7 8 15 6 0 3 2 2 0 0
C.Hyde           7 7 14 5 0 3 1 0 1 1
M.Chaffey       8 5 13 4 0 1 0 1 0 0
M.Richardson  8 4 12 8 0 0 0 2 2 3
A.Pattison       4 3  7 4 2 0 0 0 0 0
G.Stafford      5 2  7 3 4 1 0 1 3 1
L.McGuane    3 3  6 2 0 0 1 0 0 1
T.Roach         4 1  5 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
J.Schulz        0 2  2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0


Top 5's

Ranking points

LeCras          157
Stenglein       134
Rosa             133
Judd             131
J.Bowden      126

Contested possies

Judd            11
Chick           10
Tuck            10
Armstrong      9
Cousins         8

Uncontested possies

Fletcher        29
Stenglein       24
Deledio         24
Raines          23
Cousins        22

Effective kicks

Rosa            17
Fletcher        16
Butler           16
Stenglein      13
Judd            13

Inside 50

Fletcher        9
Butler           8
Lynch           7
Pettifer         7
Deledio        7

Rebound 50

P.Bowden      6
Deledio          5
J.Bowden      5
Stenglein       5
Hunter           5 
 

[one-eyed]

Lots of work to do: Wallace
6:15:36 PM Sat 2 September, 2006
Jason Phelan
Exclusive to richmondfc.com.au

The Tigers may have failed their test against West Coast and reinforced the amount of work still to be done at Punt Road after falling by 88 points on Saturday, but Terry Wallace is confident the graph is headed in the right direction.

Going into the match with three wins on the trot, Wallace had been eager to gauge the development of his team against top-shelf opposition and admitted the result gave him food for thought to digest in the coming months.

"I learned that we've still got a long way to go, but I also learned that we were fairly inexperienced out there," he said of the defeat.

"We've played some really good footy over the last few weeks and we wanted to see whether it would stack up against one of the better sides in the competition and clearly we couldn't get our hands on the footy around the middle of the ground for it to stack up enough.

"We just couldn't get our hands on the footy early in the game - they were just too fierce and too strong around the football."

Full article at: http://richmondfc.com.au/default.asp?pg=news&spg=display&articleid=294498

[one-eyed]

Ruthless Eagles toy with second-rate Tigers
Lyall Johnson at the MCG
The Age
September 3, 2006

WHILE an 88-point thumping obviously speaks volumes about a match, yesterday's smashing of the Tigers by West Coast went a long way to answering two questions that had been nagging the football world.

First, are the Eagles, after their thrashing by Fremantle last week, playing well enough to take the finals by the throat? And second, just how far has Richmond got to improve to become a good side?

On yesterday's form the answers don't need much contemplating. Yes, and still some way yet.

The Eagles were simply brilliant, which in itself made the Tigers look worse than they are.

There are days when you can sense early that things are going to go a certain way. And when the Eagles, after surging forward in the first minute to open the scoring with the first of Mark LeCras' five goals, peppered the ball inside 50 in the first five minutes without allowing Richmond to once move it past the centre circle, it was as plain as day what was going to transpire. If not for missing at least half a dozen shots they should have gobbled up, the Eagles could have gone into the first break as many as nine goals ahead, rather than with the 31-point margin they enjoyed.

By half-time they were 54 points ahead and at three-quarter-time 89, before nudging the margin to 99 points late in the last when Steven Armstrong nailed his third. If not for Greg Stafford's two late goals the Tigers would probably have gone down by their fourth 100-plus margin this season.

While they excelled in every department, the Eagles set the game up by smashing the Tigers in the midfield.

Chad Fletcher was at his brilliant best, Ben Cousins was not outstanding, but he was damn good, Chris Judd was being tailed by Richmond skipper Kane Johnson, and while Johnson got the points in negating him in the first half, Judd hit the afterburners in the second.

Add to the mix the at times overlooked and underrated Tyson Stenglein, who gathered 29 touches for the day, and the old firm didn't need Andrew Embley (not selected because of shoulder trouble) or Michael Braun, who was just having a quiet day. And it would be remiss not to at least mention young Matt Rosa, who yesterday showed he is likely to be a class player.

Of course a midfield can't do it alone and the Eagles had clear winners at both ends as well. Darren Glass and Jaymie Graham did a tag team on Matthew Richardson. In his defence, Richardson worked hard and covered vast distances with his strong long leads.

At the other end, Quinten Lynch, Sam Butler and LeCras kicked 12 goals between them. With Richmond's undersized defence, Lynch was always going to be a massive problem, and his strong marking made him a menacing target.

But LeCras was perhaps the surprise packet. Until yesterday he hadn't kicked a goal this season but time and again it was as if he was the invisible man as far as Richmond was concerned.

And what John Worsfold would have enjoyed as much as anything, every time the ball hit the ground in the Eagles forward line, West Coast players fought tooth and nail to keep it there.

As for the other question, the Tigers' performance was, perhaps, an aberration, because they are certainly capable of much better.

For some reason the Tigers just did not come to play, which makes one wonder about their mental attitude given it was Stafford and Mark Chaffey's final match.

Granted Richmond has been hit by injury this year (and certainly Mark Coughlan and Nathan Brown were two midfield types sorely missed yesterday) but the fact was stark against the slick Eagles that the Tigers have serious skill deficiencies under pressure. Greg Tivendale's shocking effort in the third quarter of grubbing a kick 15 metres was a classic example. Daniel Chick found LeCras with the turnover and the goal was a formality.

The match showed up clear structural deficiencies. With Richmond undermanned and undersized in defence with Andrew Kellaway, Darren Gaspar and Ray Hall missing, surely Terry Wallace must look at what can happen without them before swinging the axe. With the exception of Richardson, key positions at the other end of the ground are also a worry.

One of the Tigers' few winners was Andrew Raines. Forget the Rising Star award, Raines again showed why he is a strong chance of winning his club's best and fairest. But when he starts the match at centre half-forward you know things aren't looking great.

http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/realfooty/articles/2006/09/02/1156817151124.html

[one-eyed]

Eagles expose Wallace's big task
03 September 2006   
Sunday Herald Sun
Mark Harding

RICHMOND'S year ended as it began. Not quite with a 100-point plus defeat like Round 1 but a brutal bashing just the same.

While there was a lot to like about the progress it made through most of 2006, yesterday's 88-point thrashing by West Coast at the MCG was a reminder of how much more work needs to be done by Terry Wallace's young Tigers.

There was a yawning gap in the class, the run, the strength and the disposal of the two teams.

For the Eagles, in only their second appearance at the MCG since last year's Grand Final, the match was a confidence booster, especially after the humiliation of last week's defeat at the hands of Fremantle.

But John Worsfold was still left with two big quandaries after the match: Was it too soft? And who is he going to drop to make way for Daniel Kerr, Andrew Embley, David Wirrpanda and Ashley Hansen when they return from injury during the finals?

The three most likely suspects before the match played cracking games. Former Demon Steven Armstrong and 20-year-olds Mark LeCras and Sam Butler booted 12 goals between them.

Butler had 25 possessions and got better as the game went on. Armstrong had 20 and his four goals after starting on the bench gave the Eagles an extra dimension to their attack.

LeCras, playing only his fifth game, booted five goals and took 10 marks as a leading alternative to Quinten Lynch. He had kicked only two goals before yesterday but with four behinds he could easily have booted seven or eight.

If he makes way for one of the established players next week he will surely have one of the best hard-luck stories to stew over for the summer.

The Eagles booted 26 goals, but the pressure of the match was perhaps not what Worsfold would have ordered on the eve of the finals.

For that he can blame ruckman Dean Cox and his stellar midfield for the way they dominated the Tigers from the start, giving the forwards a wealth of opportunities.

If Cox was playing Troy Simmonds for All-Australian ruck selection, then he can hire his tux now.

His first quarter was magnificent as he helped the Eagles go inside their forward 50 twice as many times as the Tigers 18-9.

The only reason the contest wasn't dead at quarter time was because of some wayward kicking in front of goal. Le Cras took five marks inside 50m, but booted 2.2.

Down the other end, it was obvious early that the Richmond key forward was a different Matthew Richardson to the one who tore Essendon apart last week.

Richo fans might well point to poor delivery and close checking from full-back Darren Glass. But the Tiger big man dropped the first three marks that came his way -- two bouncing off his chest and the other slipping through his fingers.

To be fair, he improved after half-time but by then the contest was dead, thanks to another five goal to one second term and then an 11-goal third quarter by the Eagles.

Chris Judd booted three goals in the third quarter, including one from a trademark dash from a centre tap-out. While he played another great game, it will probably not be a vote-scorer in the Brownlow.

Judd left the field late in the game with a groin niggle while the other injury concern for the Eagles was the concussion suffered by Brent Staker.

Tigers skipper Kane Johnson had the task of restricting Judd while Greg Tivendale was assigned Ben Cousins.

Cousins was superb with 30 possessions and eight clearances in a best-on-ground display, only narrowly ahead of Chad Fletcher and Tyson Stenglein.

For the Tigers, the good news was that their best players were their future. Running defenders Brett Deledio, Andrew Raines and Dean Polo stood up reasonably well to the West Coast onslaught, although they had lots of opportunities with the ball down in the Eagles forward line so frequently.

For most of the first half, the Eagles played with eight forwards, manning up and refusing to allow Wallace the loose man in defence that has worked so well for him most of the year. As a result, the Tigers had an open forward line, but with little opportunity to exploit it.

Greg Stafford kicked three goals in his final game, including the last two of the match which saved the Tigers from what would have been their fourth 100-point defeat for the season. Mark Chaffey made only a modest contribution in his final game, but along with Stafford was sent off in style at the end.

http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/footy/common/story_page/0,8033,20340900%255E19742,00.html

[one-eyed]

Richmond left gazing at gulf
03 September 2006   
Sunday Herald Sun
Scot Palmer

MISSING the final eight is a blessing in disguise for Richmond.

Coach Terry Wallace and his players must realise the gap between ninth or 10th and the top bracket, headed by West Coast, is so wide it's a gulf.

The Eagles yesterday stamped their favouritism on the AFL premiership with an awesome display in only their second match this season at the MCG.

The Tigers, who had kicked more than 20 goals in the previous three games, had only two to half-time and lost by 88 points.

It is clear the summer will be a long one for Wallace and his team.

Key forward Matthew Richardson, who took 19 marks last weekend, had only one until half-time, and, in the end, managed eight, kicking a meagre 2.3 for the game.

Meanwhile, West Coast produced the type of fire power up front the club will be happy to take in to the finals, thanks to Quinten Lynch and fifth-gamer Mark LeCras.

Drafted in 2004 from West Perth, LeCras made his debut last year.

Yesterday he was more than just a decoy, finishing with 5.4 from 14 kicks. And pleasingly for coach John Worsfold, he was one of 12 Eagles' goalscorers in the match.

Wallace, on the other hand, must have wondered at times whether he should rethink the positions of his two experienced defenders, Andrew Kellaway and Darren Gaspar, in his list plans for next season.

Besides Joel Bowden, the Richmond defenders were fragile.

Lynch's improvement is a big plus for the Eagles' finals campaign.

In the last quarter, he demonstrated to the MCG crowd of 35,000 his versatility at goal shooting.

Marking 70m out and lining up for West Coast's 25th goal, Lynch pulled out his mouth guard, stuck it in his sock and let fly.

The ball soared between the goal at half-post height.

In the first half, West Coast matchwinners Chris Judd, Ben Cousins and Chad Fletcher were on cruise control in the middle. They switched in to top gear in the second half, dominating their rivals.

Judd seemed to change to jet power after half time and, in one exceptional burst from the centre square, he bounced to the 50m and banged through a brilliant goal.

Credit for the Eagles midfield dominance must also go to the ruck work of man mountain Dean Cox, whose height advantage over the Tigers ruck was clear.

Late in the match, the message must have got through to the Tigers that they had not lost four matches by 100 points or more in a season because their intensity lifted.

Greg Stafford, in his last game, kicked two late goals to add respectability to the scoreline.

Richmond, despite being embarrassed at times at the ease with which the Eagles moved forward and scored, never surrendered. Their commitment is something Wallace can take in to the new season.

But it would be an illusion if anyone at Punt Rd believed all the Tigers needed was a top-up of two or three players to make inroads on top-of-the-ladder sides.

Richmond will need more maturity, physical strength and skill to hit a target with 90 per cent accuracy -- like West Coast did yesterday -- before they make the step up.

http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/footy/common/story_page/0,8033,20340895%255E19742,00.html

[one-eyed]

Eagles spread talents thick
04 September 2006   Herald-Sun
Jon Anderson

RICHMOND All-Australian ruck contender Troy Simmonds says West Coast is better placed than 12 months ago to win a third flag.

And rather than pointing to the obvious in the Eagles' abundance of midfield runners, Simmonds says it's their backmen and forwards who will make the difference.

"They're a real chance to go one better than last year. They've always had a super midfield, but have strengthened their backline with (Jaymie) Graham," said Simmonds, who is shortly leaving for the US on a two-week holiday with retired teammate Greg Stafford.

"I also think their forward line is better. (Quinten) Lynch has improved a lot and he wasn't even in their side on Grand Final day last year. Right from the start today you could tell they were on."

Far from looking at an 88-point loss as a disastrous way to finish the Tigers' year, Simmonds says it's just another steep learning curve for his young teammates against the best available opposition.

"They have a lot of 100-game players in their midfield and can ease in other guys like (Matt) Rosa, (Sam) Butler and (Steven) Armstrong. But you tend to forget how young a lot of our guys are," he said.

"We will learn from today the way they work for each other and their hard running. It's going to make a difference for them over the next month."

Saturday's match was over as a contest after just 10 minutes and, from then on, came down to who could score the most Brownlow votes, Chris Judd or Ben Cousins. The latter should get the maximum three, although Judd's third quarter was as good as any this year.

West Coast coach John Worsfold, whose intensity off the field almost matches his playing demeanour, now has the problem that every September mentor dreams of -- who to drop to make way for Daniel Kerr, David Wirrpanda, Ashley Hansen and, possibly, Andrew Embley.

The Jones boys, Brett and Rowan, would seem to be in the firing line along with Beau Waters and even veteran Drew Banfield and rookie-listed Steven Armstrong, who were both very good on Saturday.

The Eagles will go into this week having won five of their past six, compared with a faltering four out of nine in 2005.

And to kick 26 goals in a game, albeit against an opponent unable to strangle like Sydney or Adelaide can, is a boost given they managed just seven in last year's Grand Final.

Most of the 35,016 who left the MCG on Saturday night were convinced they had seen the 2006 premiers.

As for the Tigers, it's fair to say they are in better shape than last year and have found some serious players in Andrew Raines, Dean Polo, Nathan Foley, Patrick Bowden, Cam Howat and Matthew White.

But, clearly to become a serious September contender, they need to find key-position players, which is why you can mark down Fremantle's Graham Polak as a key player for the Tigers in trade week.

http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/footy/common/story_page/0,8033,20345795%255E19742,00.html