Nahas gives it a crackrichmondfc.com.au
By Nat Edwards
Fri 25 Mar, 2011RICHMOND may have lost its opening round clash with Carlton, but there was plenty to smile about for Tigers' fans with full-forward Jack Riewoldt starting the season with six goals.
Riewoldt had 11 kicks and took six marks, four of which were contested. At times he was three-defenders deep, yet incredibly the ball managed to land on his chest.
Teammate Robin Nahas delivered a couple of spearing passes to Riewoldt and says if the full-forward's stellar form continues, the Tigers will be a winning side in 2011.
"A couple of marks he took tonight I just laughed," Nahas told afl.com.au.
"I saw the ball in the air and I thought he's got no chance but somehow it ended up in his hands. His goal kicking has improved out of sight [since] midway through last year.
"He's a great asset to our side and if he keeps firing we'll win a lot more games than we'll lose this year."
Nahas was also impressive throughout the game, spending more time in the midfield and stepping it up a notch in the third term along with Riewoldt.
He was instrumental in the Tigers' six-goals-to-nil comeback, using his speed to create space for his side, and his performance caught the eye of coach Damien Hardwick.
"I thought he was terrific. He showed his capabilities as a player and set himself a standard that I think he needs to live up to," Hardwick said.
"He was really disappointed with his year last year, but I thought when he pushed up into the midfield he looked really, really lively. Granted he takes the game on and causes some blues, but at least he has a crack."
The 23-year-old's work rate all game was outstanding and he finished the match with 13 disposals and four tackles, but despite earning praise from the coach, Nahas tried to talk down his form.
"You know I don't like to talk about myself," Nahas said.
"I think I was okay; consistency is probably the key for me. I'd love to have the four points though. If I didn't get a kick but we got the four points tonight, I'd rather that to be honest."
Last season Nahas struggled to recapture his impressive debut-season form of 2009, playing only 14 senior games.
In round three he was dropped to the VFL and it made the former rookie, who was drafted from Port Melbourne, realise he had fallen behind.
"Last pre-season I didn’t actually work hard enough and I expected things to just roll on from my first year," Nahas said.
"A lot of people say the second year is a lot harder than the first and you can’t expect things to just happen."
But Richmond fans can expect to see Nahas back to his best this year with a move into the midfield an added motivation for the pocket-sized forward.
"Obviously I went away this pre-season and worked extremely hard and got my fitness to where it should be and I hoped I'd be lucky enough to get the chance to play a bit more in the midfield," he said.
"I just had to put down a better work rate, unlike last year. I was very lazy and my form showed that."
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