The surprise 2017 premier was expected by many to fall back to the pack, but Richmond showed the flag was no fluke by proving to be the competition benchmark in 2018.
Then, just when the football world was convinced the Tigers were the real thing and certain to go back-to-back, they were outplayed by Collingwood one week short of the Grand Final and left to rue a missed opportunity.
Just days after the loss to the Magpies, coach Damien Hardwick reportedly told the playing group “shit happens” and to move on, saying the year overall had been a great success.
Richmond certainly hasn’t seen any need for major changes with a relatively quiet off-season, but the arrival of Tom Lynch will make life a bit easier for reigning Coleman medallist Jack Riewoldt, and life a lot harder for opposition defences.
List changes
In
Tom Lynch (Gold Coast), Riley Collier-Dawkins (Oakleigh Chargers), Jack Ross (Oakleigh Chargers), Fraser Turner (Clarence), Luke English (Perth)
Rookies
Jake Aarts (Richmond VFL), Jacob Townsend (Richmond), Mabior Chol (Richmond), Sydney Stack (Perth)
Out
Reece Conca, Corey Ellis, Sam Lloyd, Anthony Miles, Tyson Stengle, Nathan Drummond, Ben Griffiths, Shaun Hampson
Best Brownlow chances
Dustin Martin $8, Trent Cotchin $51, Kane Lambert $101, Shane Edwards $101
There’s no doubt Martin’s 2018 was a notch or two below his stunning Brownlow-winning season, but he did appear to be lifting his level as the year progressed, only to finish on a real low with a disappointing injury-affected personal effort in the preliminary final loss. Expect ‘Dusty’ to come out with a point to prove in 2019 and play at his best from the opening round.
GET OUT OF HERE DUSTY!
— AFL (@AFL) September 6, 2018
YOU'RE KIDDING!#AFLFinals pic.twitter.com/LeemsbrcUJ
Cotchin will also be keen to lead from the front and, while his game has been highlighted by a selfless style of leadership the past couple of years, he can still catch the umpire’s eye and wouldn’t be a ridiculous chance for a surprise second Brownlow.
Players to watch
Jack Riewoldt, Dion Prestia
As excited as Tigers fans will be to see Tom Lynch in their forward line, just as intriguing will be what influence the former Gold Coast captain’s presence has on Jack Riewoldt. The Richmond vice-captain has improved with age and responsibility, and his 2018 Coleman was unexpected from a player whose role had changed from goalkicker to goal-creator. It will interesting to see if another genuine key forward option will see Jack relish the freedom or struggle with yet another change of role.
Goal number 600 for Jack Riewoldt!#AFLTigersDogs pic.twitter.com/yj0D4yJXBK
— AFL (@AFL) August 25, 2018
It’s no coincidence the Tigers’ midfield has become one of the league’s most powerful since Prestia joined at the end of 2016 even though the former Sun has been restricted by injury in his two seasons at Punt Road. This summer looks like being Prestia’s best pre-season for years and will give him a chance to get back to the 2014/15 form that had him in the AFL’s top-20 for average disposals.
A last chance to watch?
Shaun Grigg, Brandon Ellis
Ellis appeared to be entrenched in Richmond’s best-22 but found himself dropped twice in 2018, including for the Tigers’ finals campaign. The powers-that-be swear he is a required player, but the 25-year-old comes out of contract at the end of 2019 and will be a restricted free agent. With plenty of young talent pushing for a chance to impress at Punt Road, Ellis could find himself slipping down the pecking order and looking for a new home where he is guaranteed a game.
Grigg is another Tiger that looks like being a victim of the ‘circle of life’. The former Blue turns 31 early next season, and while he still has plenty to offer, there are young cubs coming through with their eyes on his midfield spot. Grigg was given just a one-year contract after his numbers dropped across the board in 2018 and, if he can’t prove himself invaluable, the deal may be his last.
Richmond Tigers’ 2019 list
| Number | Name | Games | Date of birth | Height, weight | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 39 | Aarts, Jake (R) | 0 | 8 Dec 1994 | 180cm 76kg | Forward |
| 12 | Astbury, David | 107 | 26 Feb 1991 | 195cm 96kg | Defender |
| 48 | Baker, Liam (R) | 3 | 27 Jan 1998 | 173cm 68kg | Forward |
| 38 | Balta, Noah | 0 | 23 Oct 1999 | 194cm 94kg | Forward |
| 29 | Bolton, Shai | 9 | 8 Dec 1998 | 175cm 76kg | Forward |
| 35 | Broad, Nathan | 30 | 15 Apr 1993 | 192cm 89kg | Defender |
| 7 | Butler, Daniel | 38 | 3 Jun 1996 | 182cm 80kg | Forward |
| 22 | Caddy, Josh | 139 | 28 Sep 1992 | 186cm 88kg | Forward |
| 11 | Castagna, Jason | 52 | 12 Jul 1996 | 181cm 80kg | Forward |
| 41 | Chol, Mabior (R) | 1 | 29 Jan 1997 | 200cm 93kg | Forward |
| 40 | Coleman-Jones, Callum | 0 | 13 Jun 1999 | 200cm 97kg | Ruck |
| 26 | Collier-Dawkins, Riley | 0 | 193cm 91kg | Midfield | |
| 9 | Cotchin, Trent | 220 | 7 Apr 1990 | 185cm 85kg | Midfield |
| 10 | Edwards, Shane | 231 | 25 Oct 1988 | 182cm 81kg | Midfield |
| 43 | Eggmolesse-Smith, Derek (R) | 0 | 4 May 1998 | 180cm 80kg | Defender |
| 5 | Ellis, Brandon | 153 | 3 Aug 1993 | 181cm 82kg | Defender |
| 32 | English, Luke | 0 | 183cm 80kg | Midfield | |
| 42 | Garthwaite, Ryan | 2 | 30 Jun 1998 | 192cm 90kg | Defender |
| 34 | Graham, Jack | 23 | 25 Feb 1998 | 181cm 82kg | Midfield |
| 6 | Grigg, Shaun | 214 | 19 Apr 1988 | 190cm 84kg | Midfield |
| 2 | Grimes, Dylan | 127 | 16 Jul 1991 | 193cm 90kg | Defender |
| 13 | Higgins, Jack | 20 | 19 Mar 1999 | 177cm 76kg | Forward |
| 14 | Houli, Bachar | 185 | 12 May 1988 | 180cm 84kg | Defender |
| 23 | Lambert, Kane | 74 | 26 Nov 1991 | 178cm 77kg | Midfield |
| 19 | Lynch, Tom | 131 | 31 Oct 1992 | 199cm 98kg | Forward |
| 31 | Markov, Oleg | 15 | 8 May 1996 | 188cm 78kg | Defender |
| 4 | Martin, Dustin | 201 | 26 Jun 1991 | 187cm 92kg | Midfield |
| 33 | Mcintosh, Kamdyn | 74 | 3 Apr 1994 | 191cm 91kg | Midfield |
| 37 | Menadue, Connor | 33 | 19 Sep 1996 | 187cm 80kg | Midfield |
| 46 | Miller, Ben | 0 | 31 Aug 1999 | 195cm 94kg | Ruck |
| 36 | Moore, Callum (R) | 8 | 3 Sep 1996 | 193cm 93kg | Forward |
| 45 | Naish, Patrick | 0 | 15 Jan 1999 | 182cm 71kg | Midfield |
| 25 | Nankervis, Toby | 59 | 12 Aug 1994 | 199cm 102kg | Ruck |
| 3 | Prestia, Dion | 130 | 12 Oct 1992 | 175cm 82kg | Midfield |
| 18 | Rance, Alex | 199 | 9 Oct 1989 | 194cm 94kg | Defender |
| 8 | Riewoldt, Jack | 249 | 31 Oct 1988 | 193cm 92kg | Forward |
| 17 | Rioli, Daniel | 55 | 16 Apr 1997 | 179cm 76kg | Forward |
| 27 | Ross, Jack | 0 | 186cm 85kg | Midfield | |
| 15 | Short, Jayden | 56 | 24 Jan 1996 | 178cm 75kg | Defender |
| 47 | Soldo, Ivan | 8 | 14 Apr 1996 | 204cm 106kg | Ruck |
| Stack, Sydney | 176cm 74kg | Midfield | |||
| 21 | Townsend, Jacob (R) | 47 | 20 Jun 1993 | 187cm 89kg | Forward |
| 28 | Turner, Fraser | 0 | 186cm 77kg | Midfield | |
| 1 | Vlastuin, Nick | 117 | 19 Apr 1994 | 187cm 87kg | Defender |
| 44 | Weller, Maverick | 121 | 13 Feb 1992 | 182cm 85kg | Forward |
Richmond Tigers’ 2019 Fixture
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thursday 21 Mar 7:20pm | Carlton | MCG |
| 2 | Thursday 28 Mar 7:20pm | Collingwood | MCG |
| 3 | Saturday 6 Apr 4:35pm | GWS Giants | Showground Stadium |
| 4 | Saturday 13 Apr 4:05pm | Port Adelaide | Adelaide Oval |
| 5 | Saturday 20 Apr 7:25pm | Sydney | Marvel Stadium |
| 6 | Wednesday 24 Apr 7:35pm | Melbourne | MCG |
| 7 | Saturday 4 May 7:25pm | Western Bulldogs | Marvel Stadium |
| 8 | Sunday 12 May 3:20pm | Fremantle | Optus Stadium |
| 9 | Sunday 19 May 3:20pm | Hawthorn | MCG |
| 10 | Saturday 25 May 7:25pm | Essendon | MCG |
| 11 | Friday 31 May 7:50pm | North Melbourne | Marvel Stadium |
| 12 | Friday 7 Jun 7:50pm | Geelong | MCG |
| 13 | Thursday 13 Jun 7:20pm | Adelaide | Adelaide Oval |
| 14 | BYE | ||
| 15 | Sunday 30 Jun 1:10pm | St Kilda | Marvel Stadium |
| 16 | Saturday 6 Jul 2:10pm | Gold Coast | Metricon Stadium |
| 17 | Sunday 14 Jul 1:10pm | GWS Giants | MCG |
| 18 | Saturday 20 Jul 1:45pm | Port Adelaide | MCG |
| 19 | Friday 26 Jul 7:50pm | Collingwood | MCG |
| 20 | Saturday 3 Aug 7:25pm | Melbourne | MCG |
| 21 | Sunday 11 Aug 3:20pm | Carlton | MCG |
| 22 | Sunday 18 Aug 1:10pm | West Coast | MCG |
| 23 | TBC | Brisbane | MCG |
Games played on
Wednesday: 1
Thursday: 3
Friday: 3
Saturday: 8
Sunday: 6
Teams played twice
Carlton, Collingwood, Port Adelaide, GWS Giants, Melbourne
2019 Preview and premiership odds
They may have fallen short on the second-last Saturday in September 2018, but the Tigers head into the new year as premiership favourites, paying $5.00.
While a few handy players were traded out, the entire flag-winning 22 is still on the list and they’ve been joined by Lynch and some talented youngsters, not the least being Jack Higgins who could lift to be a match-influencing factor in the near future.
A disappointing finish to the year should start some sort of fire in the belly of what has already proved itself to be a motivated beast, and with leaders Cotchin, Riewoldt and Alex Rance getting into the latter parts of their careers, the drive from the top will be strong.
The medical room at Punt Road hasn’t seen a lot of visitors in the past couple of years and if that changes it will be a real test of depth, but if Richmond can keep its stars fit and on the ground they will prove hard to beat again.
The boys back at it 👊 pic.twitter.com/IwQGNut5FL
— Richmond FC 🐯 (@Richmond_FC) December 3, 2018