'Why are they playing?': Kane Cornes puts blowtorch on senior Richmond playersBy Damien McCartney
Nine
12 March 2024Kane Cornes has taken aim at Tigers club bosses and coach Adem Yze after a lack-lustre opening round showing against the Gold Coast Suns.
Before they even lined up against the Suns, the Tigers were tipped to be facing an uphill battle to play September footy.
Yze last September said he wouldn't "put a ceiling" on his side's expectations for the 2024 season.
But after their performance against the Suns, Cornes said they would be better off blooding youth, and questioned the places of several senior players in the side.
Bombers great Matthew Lloyd suggested a weak roster was a contributing factor in Hardwick's departure last season, despite pushing club bosses to sign Jacob Hopper and Tim Taranto from the Giants in 2022.
"I think he would have seen what was coming at Tigerland – he knows the list better than anybody," he said.
"Nobody leaves a strong list that's about to win something, do they?"
Cornes said club bosses should have seen a performance drop coming.
"This was on the cards for two years – I can't believe no one has really seen this coming, in particular the club and Damien Hardwick," Cornes said.
He paid particular attention to the performances of Jayden Short, Dion Prestia, Dylan Grimes and Tim Taranto against the Suns.
"I was disappointed, firstly, in the efforts of some of the senior players. If you're going to get these efforts from your senior players, you've got no hope for the youngsters," he said.
Replays of the weekend then showed Short missing an easy boundary tackle, and then a "rubbish" turnover. Another replay showed Dylan Grimes spraying a free kick out on the full from inside his own 50m line.
Cornes said Yze was facing big calls on not only Grimes, but also Kamdyn McIntosh, Marlion Pickett, Jacob Koschitzke, Sam Naismith and Nathan Broad.
"I don't know why these players are playing. What benefit is the club getting from playing these players?" he posed.
"(Jacob Koschitzke) couldn't get a game at Hawthorn last year – he played 12 games last year in a 16th-ranked side.
"I'm not sure what they thought they would see in him.
"What's the point of playing Pickett, McIntosh and Grimes? Play the youth, take the pressure off the club, do what Hawthorn have done and re-set and go to the draft and re-build from the bottom-up."
Veteran journalist and fellow panellist Caroline Wilson suggested Hardwick was responsible for the Tigers' decline for going all-in on Taranto and Hopper.
In order to secure Taranto, the Tigers gave up two 2022 draft picks – No.13 Jedd Busslinger, and No.22 Max Gruzewski. For Hopper, they gave up 2022 No.34 pick Toby McMullin and the 2023 No.8 pick Daniel Curtin.
Cornes said Curtin in particular – who was picked up by the Crows – would have been a great fit for the Tigers.
"We saw with Clarkson at Hawthorn – you need a strong footy department around a coach who wants to be all-in to win," Cornes said.
"Of course you want to trade to keep winning, but you need some strong leadership to say 'nah, nah, this isn't the time to trade away the future'.
"Curtin would be the one – he's gone to Adelaide highly-rated (and) could have gone in the top three in the draft," he said.
"The others look like they can play."
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