Time for Tigers of old to return
Caroline Wilson | April 13, 2008
THE popular myth about Richmond during its most recent golden era was that a trapdoor lay in the centre of Graeme Richmond's office and those who fell into the black hole beneath it were never to return.
The sad truth about Tigerland now in its current decrepit state is that good people leave the club disenchanted or otherwise, kick major scores at other clubs and throughout the industry and still never return.
Richmond has no former player on its board, its match committee or its coaching staff. No club in the AFL has been so blatantly shunned by its own. It seems a club almost bereft of culture. Another reminder of that came six days ago when Cameron Schwab announced he would step down as Fremantle's chief executive to return home to be closer to his family. Remarkably, it is 20 years since the then 24-year-old Schwab was appointed CEO of Richmond.
Schwab's father Alan was an architect of that golden era and although Cameron did not succeed in his time as CEO, he leaves Fremantle — $8 million in debt when he joined — with $5 million in the bank, albeit without a premiership.
If the younger Schwab has an enduring passion it is to return to the club — at which he grew up — to rebuild it. He will no doubt watch today's Dockers-Tigers clash with mixed feelings.
Schwab's ambition is not necessarily immediate but perhaps it should be. He is friendly with player manager Daniel Richardson (the son of former Richmond premiership hero-turned-coach-turned-president Barry) who, in turn, is close friends with another successful sports administrator in four-time premiership ruckman Michael Green's son, Christopher.
Imagine if that trio joined forces with, say, Neil Balme and Brendon Gale — who is said to be doing so well as CEO of the players' union that a senior AFL role reportedly beckons — who in turn managed to recruit a trio of former Tigers now well-regarded in assistant coaching ranks such as Wayne Campbell, Chris Bond and Ashley Prescott, to take over the club?
Perhaps Schwab's worst task during his time at Richmond was sacking Kevin Bartlett, the most famous example of a legend at odds with his club. Now Bartlett is a media commentator whose knowledge is so well regarded that he sits on the AFL Hall of Fame, All-Australian and Rising Star selection committees as well as the laws of the game board. Only last year, after 16 years, did he return to attend a club function and even that was one run by the past players.
Brett Ratten pushed and was moderately successful at putting some of the Carlton he knew and loved back into Carlton. If Ratten had his way you get the feeling the entire 1995 premiership team would be back at the club in some form or another.
Not Richmond. Not only has the club failed to lure one former player onto its board since Tony Jewell departed four seasons ago but Terry Wallace's assistant coaches and match committee consist of not one individual with an ounce of Tiger blood. No AFL club bar the Tigers has not one former player at any level.
Prescott resisted overtures to return to Punt Road but jumped at the chance to join Matthew Knights at Essendon, while Bond, whom Richmond has attempted to lure back several times, chose to move to Fremantle. Campbell works at the Western Bulldogs.
The subtle but passionate attempt to lure Kevin Sheedy back to Richmond began this time last year. A group of powerful former Tigers did not want Sheedy as coach but as an executive president. The symbolism, they felt, would have been as powerful as the reality and the reality is that the club appears to have no heart. Only a couple of board members make a genuine contribution. The rest should think seriously about stepping down at the end of the year. President Gary March, at least, genuinely loves the club but is heavily committed and has adopted a "softly softly" approach to fixing Richmond's damaged culture. More is required.
Greg Miller, the North Melbourne shareholder, must step down as a director. Now in his sixth year at the club, the man who largely engineered two North Melbourne premierships must be seen to have officially failed at Tigerland. The club is worse off than when he joined and he did so with the express purpose of leading the club to its 11th premiership.
Just over a year ago Miller sat with Wallace and helped explain why the club could not expect genuine success until 2011. What an indictment on Miller. It is said he spread himself too thinly but no one asked Miller to work outside the club, and devote himself to other worthy but non-Richmond-related causes.
Early draft picks at the end of 2004 have been proven inferior but won the PR battle for the Casey-Miller ticket as did Wallace, the popular choice as coach.
I have less issue with Wallace's performance and believe the club would be crazy to sack him before the end of his five-year term.
Wallace is a good coach, strong on tactics, innovation and salesmanship but not necessarily known for talent in developing young players. The shortcomings should have been dealt with much earlier and Miller should have seen that.
Steven Wright, the Richmond CEO, has done a more than reasonable job when you consider the club's dreadful financial position when he took over. But his only football claim is that he is a passionate Tiger and so he has never interfered with the football operations, when perhaps others would have.
Richmond supporters bled last year as they watched the positive influence Balme had on Geelong and coach Mark Thompson in his debut season at Kardinia Park. For 25 years they cheered but bled as Sheedy became one of the greatest coaches in the history of the game. Perhaps Knights will cause them heartache as well.
Too many Tigers have left the club, disenchanted but carrying an intangible passion for Richmond. Too many have never returned.
The club has lost a generation of barrackers but the true believers remain. Thank heavens for the past players group, and thank heavens for Matthew Richardson. It is time for the good servants of Tigerland — and their offspring — to join forces and return. It is also time for some others to cut their losses and leave.
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