Game plan clear: Edwardsrichmondfc.com.au
By Mic Cullen
Wed 09 June, 2010RICHMOND midfielder Shane Edwards says a simplified game plan is one of the keys to his side's rapid improvement through this year.
The Tigers are 16th at the halfway point, but have made huge strides in the last month.
After a 73-point hiding from Hawthorn in this year's NAB Cup competition, Richmond was a far different side in their round-eight rematch and lost by just three points.
Edwards, who has played all 11 games this season, says new coach Damien Hardwick's direction has brought out the best in him and his teammates.
"Every other year I've started off pretty slow, or I've started at Coburg," he told richmondfc.com.au.
"So this year I was just happy to have a good pre-season and learn a solid structure to play with. It's made it a lot easier to know your role in the side, I reckon.
"Dimma (Hardwick) has told us where he wants us to kick the ball in certain parts of the oval, so you know where to run if you want to get a kick.
"It's vice-versa with the defence. We know where we want them to have the ball.
"It's just a lot more in-depth than what I've had. You know the answers before we've actually got the football."
The cold hard reality is that the Tigers are two games clear on the bottom, with a percentage of 61, but the 21-year-old said the mood at Punt Road was very positive.
"I think after each game we know how much we're improving," he said. "I think we're a lot better than we were at the start of the season, and after every game you've learned something and you've performed better.
"We're getting closer to teams. We're playing better for longer.
"We'll get the wins on the board sooner or later. We're just working on the game plan."
The Richmond midfield is talent-laden, with Nathan Foley, Brett Deledio, Brownlow Medallist Ben Cousins, draftee Dustin Martin, Daniel Connors, Daniel Jackson, Jeromey Webberley and Edwards all running through there.
"There's a lot of class in the midfield, and we just need to get a lot of games into the players and play together for a while," he said.
"I know that's what happened at Hawthorn - all the midfielders started off playing with each other and then they won a premiership a few years later after playing so many games with each other.
"I think there's no lack of class in our midfield, and especially in a couple of years, with Dustin Martin in the mix now [and] Webberley out on the wing, there's some really good players coming through."
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