The day the Tiger died

[Lozza]

I hate to start the season off with such a pessimistic post but the loss tonight will scar the Tigers for a long long time, in fact i feel it will be such a heartfelt loss that they might not even recover this year. Tonight will if anything make the younger players question whether they belong at the highest level, older players may question if they still belong at the highest level. Even Terry Wallace must be behind closed doors be questioning his coaching ability ,after all its now his list, his "5 year plan", well on tonight's performance the Richmond Football Club has just wasted 5 years, its as simple as that. Its a sad sad day for the Richmond Football Club, i hope the fighting spirit against the odds displayed by the club throughout its history provides the inspiration that the players, the coaching staff, even the medical staff (letting Cuz back on was unforgivable) can draw on and dig deep (very deep) to recover from this horror of all days, only time will tell.

[Tigermonk]

It was Shocking & whats worse is we got Geelong at Skilled Stadium next week
l can feel a huge spanking coming 

[Francois Jackson]

5 YEAR PLANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN

5 YEAR SCATA MALAKA BUSTI THATS WHAT TERRY HAS DONE WITH THIS TEAM IN 5 YEARS

Tackling-------------hahahahahaaha

[Ramps]

problem is this. Wallace has spent 4 years redeveloping the list: Outcome is

Bowden,Simmonds,Brown,Richardson,Cousins, Johnson are all in the last 2 years of footy imho. Thats 6 players. Raines, McMahon, McGuane, Edwards, Tuck, White & Jackson all have some degree of kicking problem - in terms of disposing of the footy or generally there decision making. Thats another 7 players. And theres others as well but at 1.47am I cant be bothered looking. With Gold Coast coming in we are up the creek without a paddle.

[Rodgerramjet]

Its actually games like that tonight that really damage our brand, its almost criminal.

[wayne]

Laughing stock.

No matter how much we try, we can't change the fact that we've been a laughing stock for 20+ years now, and last night opposition supporters would have been laughing harder than they ever have.

Browny coming out and saying it was a preview of the finals for us, Sheeds saying we can win a flag, Wallace saying we're ready now after 5 years, sit back and enjoy the ride.

It always comes back to bite us, last night was embarrasing.

I usually get a few texts from mates giving me a stir up about the Tigers if we cop a heavy loss, but I don't get them anymore, I think my friends actually are feeling sorry for me and think that watching the Tigers is punishment enough.

Yeah yeah, it's round 1, there is 21 rounds left, we have an easy draw, we might have a few unconvincing wins against weaker sides with Bowden, Browny and McMahon looking like a million bucks and some Tiger fans saying 'we told you so' when others have suggested they be dropped. We get on a roll, have a crunch game and get crunched. Just like it always has been for the last few years.

[Chuck17]

I usually get a few texts from mates giving me a stir up about the Tigers if we cop a heavy loss, but I don't get them anymore, I think my friends actually are feeling sorry for me and think that watching the Tigers is punishment enough.

Exactly the same thing has happened to me, not one text/email from the mates I usually stick it up and who always give it to me after a bad tiges day out.

It it must be the pits when even your arch enemy sides fans feel sorry for you.

[Hellenic Tiger]

Ok I have slept on this and been to work today. I am still devastated and disappointed.
I'm not angry and I don't know why. Maybe I have no passion, maybe I have seen this all before and I have just accepted this. I don't know. All I know is that I feel down in the dumps and I can't find any solace right now. Reading all the rants ppl have focused on players and individuals which is fair enough. We are all entitled to our opinions and if you are a member as I am even more so. So here's my rant and I can only hope that is pertinent and applicable and resonates with us as right now I feel nothing.



For me I just looked at the majority of the Tiger faithful in the ground last night. Real footy fans who have supported this club for a very long time and put their money and time in the club for just as long. The looks on their faces was evident. The look of disappointment.30-40 years ago a performance like that would have been met with such passion and disdain I am sure fans from way back then can remember rowdy Annual General Meetings at the Old Richmond Town Hall. Why? Because we didn't take to kindly yo failure back then. So where has the passion gone? I think the stagnancy and apathy of this footy club since those grand old days has sucked it dry.

Failing in another big game with a big crowd tonight I saw how the fans felt. Empty. That anger I was speaking about that we saw all to frequently years ago was replaced by acceptance slowly and now it has been permanently replaced by disappointment. Disappoint at what?
Failure in another big game.
List Deficiencies
Skill Deficiencies
Failure in general
The emptiness of being falling down hard after building your excitement up.
Supporting a club that has become the epitomy of failure.
Two finals series in 27 years
Worst performed club in the AFL over a generation.
Perhaps the passion that we all know is gone in many of us. People/ Moderators can sugar coat this how they like and I won't handpick individuals from on and off field staff to lambaste but if we build ourselves up for 1 game a year to perform and we fail every time in every year then something is seriously cancerous within the footy club and unless it gets pinpointed this club will remain individualistic selfish and unsuccessful much like a St Kilda and Doggies who have won one flag in their histories as they spend all their energies in celebrating individuals successes rather than nurturing team ethic and success.
1983 Carlton Round 1
1984 Carlton Round 15
1985 Essendon Round 12 Hawthorn Round 16
1986 Hawthorn Round 13
1987 Sydney Round 5
1988 never got the chance
1989 Carlton Round 6
1990 Hawthorn Round 16
1991 never got the chance lost first 4
1992 never got the chance lost 2nd game to Geelong by 126 and we never looked back.
1993 Round 1 Adelaide after we thought we turned the corner again after a pre season Grand Final.
1994 Round 23 Carlton Round 24 Geelong
1995 Round 8 Geelong Round 14 Carlton
1996 Round 1 Essendon Round 18 Brisbane Round 22 North
1997 Round 5 North Round 7 Carlton Round 9 St Kilda
1998 Round 16 Essendon Round 22 Melbourne
1999 Round 7 Carlton Round 17 Sydney
2000 Round 16 Melbourne Round 17 Essendon Round 18 North Round 22 Carlton
2001 Round 14 Hawthorn 1st Qualifying Final
2002 Round 2 Essendon
2003 Round 10 Sydney Round 11 North
2004 Round 4 Melbourne
2005 Round 5 St Kilda Round 10 Melbourne Round 11 West Coast
2006 Round 1 Doggies Round 17 Sydney Round 18 Doggies
2007 Round 1 Carlton Round 2 Sydney Round 3 Collingwood
2008 Round 2 North Round 10 Sydney Round 11 and 19 Adelaide Round 14 Carlton

All the aforementioned games in the last 27 years are games where we have been involved whether as the aggressor or the opponent where we have needed to win as a footy club to either make finals take the next step show some resolve and some substance provide joy for the fans to show that in the face of adversity this club has resolve and will stand firm despite the obstacles. Games where we have had the opportunity to shake the tag of perrenial loser of also ran and of pathetic and listless footy club. There are people who are 30 years old and would have no respect for our club and then we wonder why. By trawling through big footy and all the other footy forum websites you can see why. As they have never remembered Richmond being successful.

People will mention we beat Essendon is Sheeds/ Hird farewell. As nice as it was did it mean anything in the context of our season. No it didn't as there was nothing riding on it just like our round 1 win over the Blues last year as both sides weren't expected to figure in September anyway. Yet when we lost to Essendon when Sheeds broke Reynolds coaching record in 1998 the significance to me and every other Richmond supporter was amplified as we missed out on percentage to make the finals that year and we blew a 25 point lead close to 3 qtr time.
When a game has meaning for us and the club we fail. Sad but true and until this mentality changes or the right mix comes along we will keep on doing this. The clubs philosophy must change before we start winning those games otherwise we will have a token finals appearance every now and then to lift our spirits only for them to come crashing down like a flimsy house of cards as they did last night.
 
I think the problem lies within the off field structure of our club. Not the off field coaching structure but the board room. Too many people in the board room have been within the club confines for far too long staying well after their use by date and hence they get comfortable and become cancerous within a club structure. Therefore the team that runs out becomes a product of the club itself and it is reflective of results that occurred last night and in the big games we have been in that we have failed time and time again.  Until that cancer is cut and people at board level realise that the club overall is bigger than them rather than the tenure and years of service they want to attain in the footy club and became more philanthropic towards the club its members and its supporters we will keep on failing.

Many are calling for the coach's head and his assistants and a certain select number of the players. Yeah I agree with those people but what will a change of coach and personnel do if the intrinsic nature of the club is to serve individual purposes and individual appetites? I don't know but all I know is that die hard fans are becoming sick of this failure where the paying member is being taken for a ride by the club and it seems that maybe one day when the club does actually succeed this success will be about as significant as our finals record over the last 27 years. People cannot be hoodwinked for too much longer. You would not stay in a relationship with someone whose infidelity, lies, selfishness and self absorption was indulgent so why would fans keep spending money on memberships and go and watch the Tiges?
 

[Ramps]

Ok I have slept on this and been to work today. I am still devastated and disappointed.
I'm not angry and I don't know why. Maybe I have no passion, maybe I have seen this all before and I have just accepted this. I don't know. All I know is that I feel down in the dumps and I can't find any solace right now. Reading all the rants ppl have focused on players and individuals which is fair enough. We are all entitled to our opinions and if you are a member as I am even more so. So here's my rant and I can only hope that is pertinent and applicable and resonates with us as right now I feel nothing.



For me I just looked at the majority of the Tiger faithful in the ground last night. Real footy fans who have supported this club for a very long time and put their money and time in the club for just as long. The looks on their faces was evident. The look of disappointment.30-40 years ago a performance like that would have been met with such passion and disdain I am sure fans from way back then can remember rowdy Annual General Meetings at the Old Richmond Town Hall. Why? Because we didn't take to kindly yo failure back then. So where has the passion gone? I think the stagnancy and apathy of this footy club since those grand old days has sucked it dry.

Failing in another big game with a big crowd tonight I saw how the fans felt. Empty. That anger I was speaking about that we saw all to frequently years ago was replaced by acceptance slowly and now it has been permanently replaced by disappointment. Disappoint at what?
Failure in another big game.
List Deficiencies
Skill Deficiencies
Failure in general
The emptiness of being falling down hard after building your excitement up.
Supporting a club that has become the epitomy of failure.
Two finals series in 27 years
Worst performed club in the AFL over a generation.
Perhaps the passion that we all know is gone in many of us. People/ Moderators can sugar coat this how they like and I won't handpick individuals from on and off field staff to lambaste but if we build ourselves up for 1 game a year to perform and we fail every time in every year then something is seriously cancerous within the footy club and unless it gets pinpointed this club will remain individualistic selfish and unsuccessful much like a St Kilda and Doggies who have won one flag in their histories as they spend all their energies in celebrating individuals successes rather than nurturing team ethic and success.
1983 Carlton Round 1
1984 Carlton Round 15
1985 Essendon Round 12 Hawthorn Round 16
1986 Hawthorn Round 13
1987 Sydney Round 5
1988 never got the chance
1989 Carlton Round 6
1990 Hawthorn Round 16
1991 never got the chance lost first 4
1992 never got the chance lost 2nd game to Geelong by 126 and we never looked back.
1993 Round 1 Adelaide after we thought we turned the corner again after a pre season Grand Final.
1994 Round 23 Carlton Round 24 Geelong
1995 Round 8 Geelong Round 14 Carlton
1996 Round 1 Essendon Round 18 Brisbane Round 22 North
1997 Round 5 North Round 7 Carlton Round 9 St Kilda
1998 Round 16 Essendon Round 22 Melbourne
1999 Round 7 Carlton Round 17 Sydney
2000 Round 16 Melbourne Round 17 Essendon Round 18 North Round 22 Carlton
2001 Round 14 Hawthorn 1st Qualifying Final
2002 Round 2 Essendon
2003 Round 10 Sydney Round 11 North
2004 Round 4 Melbourne
2005 Round 5 St Kilda Round 10 Melbourne Round 11 West Coast
2006 Round 1 Doggies Round 17 Sydney Round 18 Doggies
2007 Round 1 Carlton Round 2 Sydney Round 3 Collingwood
2008 Round 2 North Round 10 Sydney Round 11 and 19 Adelaide Round 14 Carlton

All the aforementioned games in the last 27 years are games where we have been involved whether as the aggressor or the opponent where we have needed to win as a footy club to either make finals take the next step show some resolve and some substance provide joy for the fans show that in the face of adversity this club has resolve and will stand firm despite the obstacles. Games where we have had the opportunity to shake the tag of perrenial loser of also ran and of pathetic and listless footy club. there are people who are 30 years old and would have no respect for our club and then we wonder why. By trawling through big footy and all the other footy forum websites you can see why.
People will mention we beat Essendon is Sheeds/ Hird farewell. As nice as it was did it mean anything in the context of our season. No it didn't as there was nothing riding on it just like our round 1 win over the Blues last year as both sides weren't expected to figure in September anyway. Yet when we lost to Essendon when Sheeds broke Reynolds coaching record in 1998 the significance to me and every other Richmond supporter was amplified as we missed out on percentage to make the finals that year and we blew a 25 point lead close to 3 qtr time.
WHEN A GAME MEANS SOMETHING FOR THE CLUB FOR THE FANS FOR THE TEAM WE FAIL. Sad but true and until this mentality changes or the right mix comes along we will keep on doing this. The clubs philosophy must change before we start winning those games otherwise we will have a token finals appearance every now and then to lift our spirits only for them to come crashing down like a flisy house of cards as they did tonight.
 
I think the problem lies within the off field structure of our club. Not the off field coaching structure but the board room. Too many people in the board room have been within the club confines for far too long staying well after their use by date and hence they get comfortable and become cancerous within a club structure. Therefore the team that runs out becomes a product of the club itself and it is reflective of results that occurred last night and in the big games we have been in that we have failed time and time again.  Until that cancer is cut and people at board level realise that the club overall is bigger than them rather than the tenure and years of service they want to attain in the footy club and became more philanthropic towards the club its members and its supporters we will keep on failing.

Many are calling for the coach's head and his assistants and a certain select number of the players. Yeah I agree with those people but what will a change of coach and personnel do if the intrinsic nature of the club is to serve individual purposes and individual appetites? I don't know but all I know is that die hard fans are becoming sick of this failure where the paying member is being taken for a ride by the club and it seems that maybe one day when the club does actually succeed this success will be about as significant as our finals record over the last 27 years. People cannot be hoodwinked for too much longer. You would not stay in a relationship with someone whose infidelity, lies, selfishness and self absorption was indulgent so why would fans keep spending money on memberships and go and watch the Tiges?
 

Thats a very very good post. Change needs to happen and it needs to happen fast. We need some big names in big roles at Richmond, to change the attitude of the place. A Leigh Matthews in the coaching area, maybe someone like Kevin Bartlett with a senior role in the Boardroom. Things have to change.

[Mr Magic]

This on top on the Centenary massacre last year is just about the last straw for this Tiger.

Feel so empty and helpless.
I actually am losing my enjoyment of football.

[Go Richo 12]

This on top on the Centenary massacre last year is just about the last straw for this Tiger.

Feel so empty and helpless.
I actually am losing my enjoyment of football.

Gee is it only round 1? Lets not get too negative yet, but just to contradict myself, this loss is worse than the geelong flogging by about 700 points a few years back!

[tiogar]

Its actually games like that tonight that really damage our brand, its almost criminal.

That game was a disaster. If we discount the Essendon turnout to the Hird game in 2007 the Richmond turnout for this was the biggest one club turnout to any game this decade. We probably had about 52,000 to 33,00 blues and a few neutrals. In Anzacs you would have 45,000 Pies, 40,000 bums and a few neutrals.

What did the Huge Tiger Army get? Absolute rubbish. Thousands of that number won't be back.

[bojangles17]

It did not die not be any stretch, probably shjowing my age by declaring Ive seen some of that shot before, where do I start, the 15g first qtr v North Melbourne, forget it...it's all about what we do next....Facts are we have pretty well a full squad to pick from, in most cases when sides hit the skids early they have their core players absent, we are not in that position. I believe we are well placed to battle our way back to where we should be...starting with a dour scrap with the Cats leading into a win v the Dogs...we do have some worries though....our forward setup has gone backwards...If Brown doesnt fire a shot and richo up the ground we look sooooooo ordinary I50...and Im not sure what can be done with that