Richmond spoil Dustin Fletcher's 400th game with 13-point win Jake Niall
The Age
May 31, 2015RICHMOND 3.2 5.6 7.10 10.12 (72)
ESSENDON 1.4 3.7 6.8 8.11 (59)
Goals:
Richmond: S Grigg 2, T Cotchin 2, B Griffiths, C Ellis, D Martin, J Riewoldt, K McIntosh, S Morris.
Essendon: J Daniher 2, T Colyer 2, J Carlisle, J Merrett, J Watson, P Chapman.
BEST:
Richmond: Edwards, Ellis, Deledio, Cotchin, Martin, Grigg,
Essendon: Heppell, Goddard, Z. Merrett, Colyer, Melksham.
Umpires: Scott Jeffery, Brett Rosebury, Dean Margetts.
Official Crowd: 83,804 at MCG.
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Hidden underneath the joint celebrations of Dustin Fletcher's 400th game and the Indigenous contribution to football was a critical game between sides which seemed almost deadlocked in the competition.
Richmond and Essendon stood at 4-4, eighth and ninth on the ladder respectively. The winner would be 5-4 and filled with optimism. The loser would be falling into a difficult spot.
In a game mainly controlled by defence, it was Richmond's greater fluency and edge in forward potency that proved decisive – if an ultimate margin of 13 points can be considered so.
The pattern throughout was one of the Tigers opening up leads and the tenacious Dons clawing back. This happened on three occasions – in the first half, when the Tigers led by nearly four goals, in the third term (17 points) and again in the last quarter, when the Tigers booted two very quick goals, the first within 25 seconds to Shaun Grigg, the next to substitute Corey Ellis.
The Dons closed to within two kicks for the final time, but couldn't find that passage to goal for the next major. Conversion was problematic for the red and blacks in key moments.
The Tigers defended stoutly in the final 10 minutes, when Essendon had Fletcher sitting on the bench with an ice pack and wearing the red vest.
But one had sensed since relatively early that the Tigers were more likely to score and therefore to prevail. Ten goals will not win most games in pristine conditions at the MCG, but it was sufficient here.
For the Tigers, the hard-running and proficient Brandon Ellis was probably the most effective player afield and was recognised as such, though Shane Edwards was nearby and Trent Cotchin, Dustin Martin and Brett Deledio made telling contributions, as did key defender Alex Rance. The Dons were well-served, as ever, by Dyson Heppell, Brendan Goddard and the whippet-like speed of Travis Colyer.
But they had slightly less zip and class around the ball, and were more apt to squander in attack.
The Bombers fought back from a deficit of nearly four goals late in the second quarter and again from 17 points in the third term, when they lacked spark and the Tigers seemed very much in command.
The momentum then shifted abruptly, after Tiger cub Conor Menadue hit the post. The Bombers would rebound from the kick-in, enabling Jobe Watson to take a magnificent mark and convert.
Watson, hitherto quiet, became an important influence, as Essendon nailed three consecutive goals and broke their pattern of forward line constipation. The Dons had discovered some run and carry, and were chancing their arm in the corridor.
When Joe Daniher rose to grab a commanding mark and converted, the Dons had whittled the deficit to a point. The Tigers would respond with what was perhaps the most critical goal of the game – a snap from a stoppage to Kamden McIntosh with little more than a minute left in third quarter.
The Tigers' 23-point advantage late in the second quarter was built on superior ball usage – particularly a willingness to lower their eyes and find targets.
After a period of stasisMartin burst powerfully from a scrimmage to convert from outside 50m – the first goal of the second term having taken nearly 20 minutes. Then Ben Griffiths – Fletcher's initial opponent (he moved on to Liam McBean) – capped off a handball chain that flowed from a superb Steve Morris tackle.
The Bombers, though, responded in timely fashion, as a Bachar Houli fumble allowed Jackson Merrett to burst into the clear and run into an open goal. Right on the siren, Joe Daniher took one of those pack marks that few players can complete. This time, he negotiated the set shot from 40m.
In those final minutes before half-time, Essendon had cut the deficit from a worrisome 23 to a very reachable 11. Richmond's advantage had largely been built on efficiency, since the forward entries were identical (21 each) and the Dons had held sway in the stoppages, where Dyson Heppell, in particular, was important.
The Tigers were both more dangerous on the counter-attack and in their scoring territory. The difference wasn't so much in the air – Carlisle and Daniher were threatening enough – but on the deck. The Tigers had ground ball players in Martin, a resting Cotchin and Edwards; the Dons were less endowed in that department.
Richmond's first-quarter lead was due to superior ball use and accuracy. Both Costin and Jack Riewoldt converted from angles of around 45 degrees, and Cotchin, who was spending time forward, nailed his second goal from a stoppage with less than 10 seconds left in the term.
Conversely, the Bombers squandered numerous chances and failed to take advantage of the time the ball spent in their attacking half. Carlisle marked well, but was awry in his conversion, while Daniher shanked a shot out on the full.
At the end, the Tigers seemed to have more poise with the ball and, as a result, they have drawn ahead of Essendon. After Dreamtime, they can dream of finals.
http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-match-report/richmond-spoil-dustin-fletchers-400th-game-with-13point-win-20150530-ghdadz.html
