Reality hits hard for Tambling
Jon Ralph | March 10, 2008
RICHARD Tambling can't quite put his finger on when, but at some stage after he arrived in Melbourne football stopped being fun.
Back in 2005 the Northern Territory junior prodigy rode into Punt Rd ona wave of hype, assuming fame andform would flow as easily as they hadin his junior days.
Then reality hit.
The constant comparisons to Hawthornstar Lance Franklin. The responsibility of bringing upson Tyson, born when Tambling was just 19. The hamstringstrains that consistently dragged him back to thepack.
And last year, the pressure oftaking wayward younger brother Lachlan from the temptations of Darwin and relocating him in Melbourne with Tambling and partner Amy.
"In junior footy you were the No. 1 person. But playing AFL is verydifficult. Outsiders see the weekend games, but they don't see the hard work that goes on behind it, whether it's physical or mental. Footy is draining," Tambling says.
"I had self doubt all the time. Ithink I let the outside world get to me, with the write-ups in the paper that I had against me. I let thatget to me, and now I have realised that you can't control that."
Anyone who meets Tambling is soon transformed from wishing he was Franklin to wishing himevery success – and soon.
Quietly spoken and far removed fromthe football stereotype, it is impossible not to be impressed with his maturity and honesty.
During a 2007 season in which Franklin's star power shone brighter than ever and Tambling at one stage found himself playing with Coburg,something finally clicked.
For so long quick to deny his worldwas anything other than perfect, he finally confrontedhis demons.
"There are sports psychologists at theclub and we had one that the boys go to. He didn't have to say much. As all psychologists do, he just said,`Tell me about it', and I just started blabbing on. Ifound out about these things I actually didn't know werebothering me.
"I didn't realise it at the time, but (the comparisons) were affecting me, aswell as the things outside football that related to myfamily matters.
"It's not until I actually sat downwith someone and opened up, the things that came out of my mouth, that I realised they were bothering me. And then I just spat it out. Then I realised, I can changethis.
"When I knew it was getting to me, Ifixed it straight away and that was when I came back andplayed that last (solid) month of footy."
Tambling saw the Richmond psychologist twice, and he started thinking about life and football differently.
"I haven't seen him since and my girlfriend has helped me out, so there's no need to flipout again," he said. "I couldn't be more happy. The last six months has been the happiest I have been."
While Richmond has beendecidedly low-profile this summer, the murmurings about Tambling's pre-season have been too loud toignore.
He missed a week with a rolledankle, but that aside, club insiders say there is no reason he willnot match those lofty junior predictions.
"Look out for him this year," says teammate Brett Deledio, picked three selections earlierat No. 1 in the 2004 national draft.
"He is reallysetting the track alight. I don't want to put too much pressure on him but he is really doing some special things. We can't wait until he fullygets to his potential.
"I think he has been unfairly judged. Buddy (Franklin) has come out and done this and that, and Richie Tambling is going to be as good, if not better, I reckon. When that comes, the support will change for him and everyone will be on his side."
It is high praise from Deledio, but Tambling saysthe encouragement from his teammates isempowering.
"The boys have seen glimpses of what they want me to be and they believe I can become theplayer we need. They are backing me 100 per cent," hesays.
"When you come to an AFL club you look up to these blokes and are a little bit intimidated, and you holdback a bit, but they have told me, `This is what we wantyou to do'. AllI have to do is repay the belief they have in me."
As for the Franklin comparisons, Tambling acknowledges he can only end them with action.
"Buddy has gone a long way and he played greatfooty last year. There are always going to be people who compare you. You can still hear the Judd-Ball-Hodge thing, and you just try to ignore it and be the best youcan.
"It takes more development for some peoplethan it does others. I was pretty much a lightly-framedkid. Now I have put on a bit of bulk and I want to play at the level I know I can."
Brother Lachlan, 16, had dropped out of school when Tambling intervened. He is now thrivingat school.
And if Tyson was ever a distraction, he is now acheeky two-year-old who Tambling rushes home fromtraining to greet.
Tambling knows he and Richmond must perform thisyear for the circle to be complete, but at last he hasthe joy back in his life.
"Footy is going great, and I am very excited about the season.
"I have settled properly in Melbourne, got a house, got the little boy. No matter how bad your day has been, all it takes is one little smile and you are happy again."
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,23345959-19742,00.html
