Tigers thrive in wet and wild: Tuckrichmondfc.com.au
By James Bartold
10:31 PM Sat 29 May, 2010RICHMOND veteran Shane Tuck says Adelaide’s wet weather was crucial in the Tigers' 47-point thrashing of Port Adelaide on Saturday.
Tuck said the torrential rain, heavy winds and the late omission of Port Adelaide ruckman Dean Brogan helped Richmond dominate the Power at the clearances.
“The more stoppages for us the better as it’s our style of game,” he said.
“It was a real contested ball game and we’re good at that.”
The Power struggled to contain Tuck, who had 31 possessions, 13 tackles and nine clearances in an outstanding best-on-ground performance.
Following his first win at Richmond's helm, coach Damien Hardwick said Tuck’s performance and leadership were crucial. In turn, Tuck was delighted for his coach.
“It’s great that he comes over here and knocks off his mate Choco,” he said.
Tuck has responded after struggling to find a spot in the team earlier in the season with solid performances in past weeks against Essendon, Hawthorn and Adelaide.
Dustin Martin, Trent Cotchin and captain Chris Newman all contributed with hard-fought football, which Tuck said was Richmond’s game plan.
“It was one of those days to just get the ball on the boot and keep knocking it forward,” he said.
The Tigers veteran said inside knowledge from ex-Port Adelaide players Hardwick and ruck coach Brendan Lade was discussed during the week but the conditions made it difficult to properly exploit the opposition.
“We had a few things up our sleeve but it was too wet a day,” he said.
“They had a lot of insight but we couldn’t put it into practice in the conditions.”
The Tigers face St Kilda next week at Ethiad Stadium with Tuck tipping it will be a drier encounter than this week's clash.
http://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/6301/newsid/95289/default.aspx
