Tigers hungry to tackle
Jon Pierik | Herald-Sun | April 30, 2008
RICHMOND coach Terry Wallace said yesterday a more selfless attitude by his players had been integral to the team's improvement.
Wallace said years of struggle at the foot of the ladder had forced some players to worry more about personal survival than team prosperity, but that had changed after the Round 3 defeat against Collingwood.
The Tigers have since posted a win against Fremantle and a draw against the Western Bulldogs, and now face what Wallace said had the feeling of a "final" against St Kilda at Telstra Dome on Saturday night.
"We felt at times the nature of being down in the ladder at times. Blokes will go into self-survival mode and they will do what they think is right for themselves, rather than necessarily right for the team," Wallace said.
"I think the biggest change we have had is that the playing group has more trust and faith in each other to do the right thing at the right time, which includes the hard work defensively and tackling and doing those sort of things.
"It's as simple as blokes sacrificing a little bit of their own game for the sake of the team."
What has also changed is the Tigers' attack on an opponent.
While they were beaten 66-45 in tackles by Hawthorn on Sunday at the MCG, the desperation was evident.
The Tigers are still 16th for tackles this year but the statistics don't always tell the full story.
"We made a stand with our group a few weeks ago in relation to our tackling pressure. By our own standards our tackling was better again on the weekend," Wallace said.
"Our endeavour and the way we are going about our football is a bit stronger and harder over the last couple of weeks."
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,23620186-19742,00.html
