Deledio emerging as leader
By Chris Pike
for richmondfc.com.au
Mon 11 June, 2007
RICHMOND might not have beaten Fremantle on Sunday in Perth, but it certainly won some admirers and rising star Brett Deledio was a large part of that strong showing.
Deledio had another great game with 25 possessions, but what was most impressive about the 20-year-old was a courageous run with the flight of the ball into oncoming traffic in the second quarter. If Deledio can regularly add that to his game, combined with his pace that breaks the lines and his penetrating kicking, he will become a superstar.
“There are always the ups and downs in your own form, but I don’t want to focus on my own form, the only thing that matters at the moment is getting a win,” Deledio said.
“I haven’t done too many of the Chris Newman or Glenn Archer-style backing into packs, so I thought there was no better time than this game. It’s all part and parcel of playing AFL footy and it’s another aspect I need to consistently add to my game.”
The Tigers got off to the best possible start and led by 26 points during the second quarter, before the experienced Dockers stepped up a gear. As well as Deledio, Richard Tambling was superb with three goals, as were Nathan Foley and Andrew Raines. Jake King (20 possessions) and Shane Edwards (nine possessions, two goals) also caught the eye.
“Our start was exciting. We had Richard Tambling kicking goals from anywhere, young guys like Jake King and Shane Edwards making good runs down the wing … The young fellas had the confidence to run and take them on, which was good and the results were showing,” he said.
“We are a young, inexperienced side and they are experienced and probably fitter than us. They ran out the game a lot better, but we had our opportunities. I would have thought the crowd would have been happy as we played an exciting brand of footy, so the signs are good for us.”
With 11 players in the side within their first three seasons of AFL football, there is plenty to like about Richmond’s future. Despite still being a young player himself, Deledio shows all the signs on and off the field of already being a leader.
“We made some mistakes that experienced players wouldn’t. If we can get more and more games into these young blokes, we should move along fine in the not-too-distant future,” he said.
“The thing that I’ve picked up this year is that this side is going to be pretty handy when we get a lot of games into the young players and can get Troy Simmonds, Mark Coughlan and Nathan Brown back.”
Richmond now has a week off before facing Melbourne in a Friday night clash at the MCG, which Deledio hopes will break the Tigers' duck.
“[The Demons] are travelling similarly to how we are, so it will be a good game to see how we match-up and hopefully we can get our first win on the board.”
The players will spend some time together in Perth before heading back to Melbourne to train on Wednesday. They will be then left to their own devices for the rest of the week.
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