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“Fortune favours the brave” are the words famously etched above the race at Punt Road. Yet the brave were few and far between in Richmond’s Round 1 loss to the Suns on the Gold Coast Saturday night.
While it would seem Andrew Demetriou’s expansion babies have finally delivered him a fleeting moment of glee four games in to the 2014 season, not so much glee can be found for Richmond heading into Round 2.
It’s not panic stations yet, but the demons of past failures must shine the spotlight on the coaching box.
Humidity, first round nerves, pressure to deliver and a few key players (Daniel Jackson and Ivan Maric) missing aside, Richmond performed woefully and need some serious changes.
As much as one can defend Damien Hardwick and his endeavour, his long-term plans and his demeanour, reality is he was once again outcoached and failed to make changes fast enough.
In Richmond’s disastrous finals appearance last year, after being in firm control of Carlton for the majority of the first half, they blew a substantial first-half lead to eventually be overrun by their arch rivals.
Alarm bells rang loud and clear when Carlton began laying on the goals quickly and in easy fashion in the second half, yet there appeared to be no significant changes to Richmond’s structure. Tigers players looked dumbfounded and, accordingly, played like a team with no idea how to atone for poor errors and ill decision-making under pressure.
While Richmond never controlled the match against Gold Coast, the same inability to switch up various match-ups and attempt to turn the tables when Gold Coast were two players down on rotations – after an injury to Jack Martin early in the game, followed by Charlie Dixon also playing no further part after he suffered concussion – was an alarming display from a supposed top four contender.
Hardwick failed to switch up the game style the Tigers went into the game with. There was a flurry of handballs at every stoppage, the majority of which were not executed, resulting in multiple turnovers most times the Tigers were in possession.
With the exception of skipper Trent Cotchin and consistent effort from Nick Vlastuin, the midfield couldn’t deliver fast enough into the forward line, whereas when Gold Coast gained possession they often took little time to convert, leaving the Tigers second-guessing every piece of play.
Richmond were fumbly, displayed poor skills, panicked when they had the ball and all-in-all looked like they were the new kids on the block who had little or no experience as a cohesive unit.
The Tigers finished the game with 32 more disposals, 13 more kicks, 19 more handballs, 17 more clearances, 13 more stoppages and 10 more inside 50s. How can one side be on top statistically in so many areas of the game and come out winless?
While the Suns capitalised early, were switched-on from the outset and were very deserving winners, the Tigers forwards gave the team no chance of winning the game.
Delivery to the forwards was poor but it’s a two way street and when one of your two tall forwards, Tyrone Vickery, was unfavourably caught behind at every ball coming into the Tigers’ forward 50, it makes everyone’s job that much harder. For all the hard work most notably Cotchin was doing to get some flow happening, Vickery appeared lazy and unapologetic for his dismal showing as a forward.
So with one frustrated and another underachieving forward clogging up the forward line and the team firing little to no shots against a tenacious and opportunistic Gold Coast side, Hardwick looked like he had no answers as clearly Plan A had failed.
Yet Plan A has failed on too many occasions. Little changes were made.
Out of desperation, Brett Deledio was thrown into the forward line when the game was unofficially out of reach for the Tigers. The most telling indication of the vice captain’s frustration came after a poorly-delivered kick from Vickery in the last quarter was spoiled and then kicked by Deledio after it had spilled out of play. It was an expression of pent-up frustration from another success-deprived leader of the club.
Although Shaun Hampson’s debut as number one ruckman for the Tigers while Maric is on the sidelines wasn’t an ideal scenario and Jackson’s absence was felt around the ground, ultimately the decision-making, poor skill execution and inability to take the game on and do the basic things right caused Richmond’s undoing in Round 1.
Hardwick needs to get the basics right as the dreaded encounter with their arch-rivals Carlton looms even closer. It will be the true test of whether the Tigers have an alternative to Plan A which can both be implemented and executed like a true top eight side.
It is far too soon to jump to crisis contingency plans after Round 1 but Richmond must begin to show greater tenacity than the preview of 2014 we received on Saturday night.
Hardwick needs to be brave himself and make decisions that will enforce a ruthless winning mentality into the minds of all Tigers players. And with Carlton seeking redemption for their substandard loss against Port on Sunday, Richmond cannot simply rely on rectifying past demons to get them over the line.
After all, fortune favours the brave, and only the brave are left standing in September.
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