Time for Tigers to deliver
West Australian (The Age probably too)
16th March 2009, 13:00 WST
For Richmond, the time is now.
For coach Terry Wallace.
For a playing list which went within a whisker of playing finals football in 2008 and will be strengthened by the arrival of Ben Cousins.
And for a famously large and passionate supporter base, daring to dream of a return to the glory days.
When Wallace replaced Danny Frawley as coach before the 2005 season, he did so on the proviso it would take five years to revitalise a moribund playing list.
Wallace duly received the five-year deal and then set about the rebuilding job.
He knows - as does everyone else - that nothing short of a first finals campaign since 2001 will get him a contract extension.
For a club which has plumbed the depths in the three decades since winning their 10th flag, it’s a realistic aim.
The addition of Brownlow medallist Cousins to a midfield rotation including Brett Deledio, Nathan Foley, Shane Tuck and Trent Cotchin gives Richmond a high-octane engine room.
Despite the absence of a genuine power forward, the attack also looks potent, with Nathan Brown and Mitch Morton both well capable of improving on their 35-goal hauls last year.
Ditto the impressive Jack Riewoldt.
And then there’s Matthew Richardson, who is delighting in the tag of the AFL’s Benjamin Button, such has been his remarkable success in defying the rigours of age.
Richardson will again be given licence to roam in 2009 after being reborn as a wingman - a positional switch that saw him finish third in last year’s Brownlow Medal count.
In Kelvin Moore, Luke McGuane and Will Thursfield the Tigers have unearthed three good, young key defenders in a back half marshalled by new skipper Chris Newman.
One area of concern is the continued over-reliance on No.1 ruckman Troy Simmonds, who turns 31 in July, although the club has high hopes for youngsters Angus Graham and Dean Putt.
“We’ve been five years in the process, obviously it is something that has been building,” said Wallace.
“But we still think that we are a developing side, we haven’t lost anyone in relation to our senior players - guys like Richo and Browny and bringing Ben to the club, they’ve still got the ability to have an impact on games.
“We were a kick away from playing finals last year so that’s our own expectation (to play finals football).
“Our supporter expectation will be that and the footy world’s expectation will be that, but that’s our own expectation too.”
The likes of Wallace, Richardson and Brown are used to life in the media spotlight.
But even they must be stunned at how the club has dominated the news cycle in the off-season.
Graham Polak’s ongoing recovery from the life-threatening head injuries he received after being struck by a tram last July has been a remarkable human interest story.
But the blanket coverage devoted to Polak has paled in comparison to the Cousins saga.
For the recovering drug addict and the only club prepared to take a punt on him, it’s been a case of so far, so - very - good.
In essence, Richmond picked up one of the competition’s elite players of the past decade for nothing.
And the early signs are that there still a few good seasons in the 30-year-old’s legs.
“Ben brings us experience and a level head in critical situations is important in the game,” said Wallace.
“He’s been to the mountain top so he knows what it takes to be there and our players will listen and learn from that.”
The Tiger Army has responded to the arrival of Cousins and the genuine sense of hope at Punt Road by breaking the club’s alltime membership record a fortnight before the opening-round blockbuster against Carlton.
“Everyone has jumped on board, memberships are up and all those sorts of things - I don’t think that is a bad thing,” said Wallace.
“Sometimes you’ve got to raise the bar to raise expectation around a footy club anyway.”
Consider the bar well and truly raised.
FactfileCoach: Terry Wallace
Captain: Chris Newman
Last five years: 16-12-9-16-9
Premierships: 10 (1920-21, 1932, 1934, 1943, 1967, 1969, 1973-74, 1980)
Star five: Matthew Richardson, Brett Deledio, Nathan Foley, Shane Tuck, Troy Simmonds.
One to watch: Ben Cousins - The whole football world will be watching to see just what Richmond has got. Is it a Brownlow medallist who can lift the club to great heights or a thirtysomething with dodgy hamstrings and ongoing personal issues?
Ins: Ben Cousins (West Coast), Tom Hislop (Essendon), Jayden Post (Western U18), Adam Thomson (Port Adelaide), Tyrone Vickery (Sandringham U18).
Outs: Travis Casserly (delisted), David Gourdis (delisted, redrafted on rookie list), Chris Hyde (delisted), Danny Meyer (Port Adelaide rookie list), Greg Tivendale (retired).
Best line-up:B: Chris Newman, Will Thursfield, Kelvin Moore
HB: Joel Bowden, Luke McGuane, Matthew White
C: Matthew Richardson, Ben Cousins, Richard Tambling
HF: Trent Cotchin, Jack Riewoldt, Shane Edwards
F: Nathan Brown, Mitch Morton, Brett Deledio
R: Troy Simmonds, Shane Tuck, Nathan Foley
I: Kane Johnson, Cleve Hughes, Adam Pattison, Andrew Raines
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