Trent Cotchin could become one of Richmond’s greatest captains, Tigers coach Damien Hardwick saysLauren Wood
Herald-Sun
July 09, 2015 8:00PMTRENT Cotchin could eventually be one of Richmond’s greatest captains, coach Damien Hardwick says.
Cotchin, 25, has earned the plaudits of his teammates and coach alike this week after back-to-back starring roles in Richmond wins against Sydney and GWS.
His emergence this season as one of the game’s top leaders hasn’t surprised former Richmond captain Kane Johnson.
If anything, it validates his initial impressions of a young man he describes as being “different” to the average 18-year-old draftee when he landed at Punt Rd.
Johnson met a 16-year-old Cotchin on a pre-season camp, where the fresh-faced kid took the club by storm, winning training games against experienced players. Once drafted, at pick two in the 2007 national draft, Cotchin set up a room in his then-captain’s home.
“You knew he was a lot different to any other kid that had come down to the club before,” Johnson told the Herald Sun.
“It wasn’t just about his football talents, which were pretty obvious with the way he went about things, but he was just way more mature than any other 18-year-old.
“You didn’t need to worry about him too much in terms of off-field or anything like that, and his skill level was really good. You just needed to support him where you could, and he’d come and talk to you if he needed to have a chat.”
Johnson retired at the end of 2008, having played 220 games at Richmond and Adelaide, and had one of those chats with Cotchin when he was appointed captain at the start of the 2013 season.
He said the results of plenty of hard work were starting to show, and are just reward.
“The main thing I mentioned to him was try to be yourself,” Johnson said. “Just be patient and just try to play good football.
“That’s half the battle, and if you look at this year, he’s actually playing his best football as a leader. He’s standing up at the right times and the whole club looks like it’s maturing.
“He’s got good support now with Brett Deledio and Jack Riewoldt and all of those leaders standing up and supporting him. It seems like the time’s right and all of the work that they’ve done is starting to come to the fore.
“You’ve been able to tell that they’ve been getting better each (year) and the age group’s right, he’s 25, Brett Deledio’s 28 — they’re all at that right age, and Dimma’s been there five or six years and they’ve been really secure and steady in the group that’s been around, and that has to pay off at some stage.”
Hardwick says the performance of Cotchin over the last fortnight, leading the club to wins over Sydney and Greater Western Sydney respectively, hasn’t gone unnoticed, with his shift into a higher gear evident.
The skipper has come into his own, he says, and could have what it takes to be one of the Tigers’ best leaders.
“There’s a reason we made him captain,” Hardwick said yesterday.
“The way he leads by example both on and off the field has been profound, and he’s only going to continue to grow in that role, as all good leaders do.
“We’re really impressed with what he’s been able to offer and we’re really excited about what he can continue to offer.”
Hardwick believes there’s better to come from the midfielder.
“He was captain at a relatively young age for a player of his ilk, and we expect him to improve every year,” he said.
“He’s still got some work in areas that we’re continuing to develop him in, as we are with me as coach and our football staff overall.
“He’s been fantastic, and the best thing about Trent is when he leads, he leads by example, so we’ve been really impressed.”
http://www.news.com.au/sport/afl/trent-cotchin-could-become-one-of-richmonds-greatest-captains-tigers-coach-damien-hardwick-says/story-fndv8t7m-1227435584044
