Roos says Tigers are tougher under Rawlingsafl.com.au
By Aidan Ormond 3:10 PM Fri 07 August, 2009
SYDNEY Swans coach Paul Roos says his side faces a tough task this week as Richmond has become a more effective defensive unit under interim coach Jade Rawlings.
Roos says the coaching change mid-season at Tigerland is starting to bear fruit.
Rawlings took over on an interim basis from Terry Wallace after Richmond's round 11 loss to the Bulldogs. Since then, the side has enjoyed a revival of sorts with three wins and a draw.
Winning the tackle count in the last two games helped the Tigers secure consecutive victories - the first time they'd gone back-to-back this season.
Roos believes the 12th-placed Tigers are on the right track.
“They seem to be, if you look at the statistics, a little bit more defensive minded," Roos said from the SCG on Friday. "[They have] more contested possessions and their tackling's gone up a bit.
“Their defensive mind-set has increased. I'm sure Jade would say it's only a small window of time but when you're watching them play, they've got some really disciplined players now with a few run-with roles and one-on-one contests and they're trying to win some contested footy.
“They were a reasonable contested team under Terry and that's continued to improve under Jade.”
Roos brushed off suggestions the Swans would struggle on the wider open spaces of the MCG against a mobile midfield that features in-form 250-gamer Ben Cousins, Brett Deledio and Richard Tambling.
And he said the game's significance for the Swans - Michael O'Loughlin's milestone 300th game for the Bloods - is enough motivation to perform at a similar intensity to last week's one-point loss to St Kilda.
Full story at:
http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/82269/default.aspx
