The only thing less impressive than Richmond’s on-field ‘performance’ against Greater Western Sydney on Saturday was the mealy-mouthed responses off it by coach Damien Hardwick and CEO Brendon Gale.
If Richmond fans have to hear one more time that the players and coaches will “learn from it and move on” they will be within their rights to burn Punt Rd Oval to the ground.
The Tiger faithful are frothing at the mouth over the abject failure of their team this season, and are demanding change. They have a point.
‘Long-suffering Richmond fans’ is a phrase beyond cliché, but the only thing worse than having nothing remotely approaching success for 30 years is to have brightness and hope dangled in front of you, only for it to crumble away and be worse off than you were before, and seemingly further away.
The biggest problem the Tigers have under Hardwick and Gale is the same mistakes being made over and over again.
Back in April I wrote about Richmond’s version of Groundhog Day, which was the slow starts to each and every season. The Tigers have never been better than 3-3 after six rounds under Hardwick, and even being square was achieved only once.
It means every year the club begins each season under pressure, not banking any early credits for when the hard times come. Finals were still achieved in the last three seasons, but one or two of those elimination finals could have been a double chance with a brighter opening, and being ready to go early in the year.
The same mistakes, over and over.
In 2013, Richmond played Carlton twice in the home-and-away season. In Round 1 that year, the Tigers held a 36-point three-quarter time lead before hanging on to win by five points after freezing in the spotlight when the Blues made their charge.
They met again in Round 21. Once again, Richmond established a five-goal lead, and once again couldn’t control the game, this time losing by ten points.
And so what happened in the famous elimination final that year? Another Richmond lead (33 points this time), another Carlton comeback, and a result that became inevitable well before the Blues hit the front.
The same mistakes, over and over.
Richmond has also been addicted to bringing in players that had two of three failings (can’t run, can’t kick or can’t find the ball) in some sort of delusional idea about big bodies that has never been adequately explained.
Some of these were offcuts from other clubs (Sam Lonergan, Matt Thomas, Ricky Petterd, Nathan Gordon) while others were homegrown and undeveloped (Matt Arnott, Brad Helbig, Matt McDonough, Steven Morris).
The same mistakes, over and over.
Let’s not forget, Hardwick has access to five of the best seven players Richmond has produced over the last 25 years. The results haven’t followed.
Alex Rance, Jack Riewoldt, Dustin Martin, Brett Deledio and Trent Cotchin need no introduction as elite players in the competition. Since the VFL became the AFL in 1990, only Matthew Richardson and Matthew Knights would be comfortably in the conversation as fellow Tigers to be ranked in their midst.
Most talk you’ll hear suggests Richmond must hit the draft and rebuild, and perhaps cast off one or two of these players for picks. What nonsense.
Did the Dogs off-load Matthew Boyd, Bob Murphy, Dale Morris or Liam Picken two years ago when the faeces was hitting the fan? Murphy was All-Australian last year, Boyd was in the squad of 40, Morris may well be AA this year, and Picken has had the best two years of his career as the Dogs have made finals and are firmly in premiership calculations.
The common contention in the football world is that the Richmond list lacks depth to complement the big names, as if successful teams have 18 All-Australians on the field at any one time, with several more in reserve.
The Tigers had enough depth to win the fifth most home-and-away games across 2013-15, with a great number of second-tier contributors both drafted (Brandon Ellis, Shane Edwards, Nick Vlastuin, Ty Vickery, Dylan Grimes) and acquired from other clubs (Anthony Miles, Shaun Grigg, Bachar Houli, Ivan Marich, Troy Chaplin).
Most of these players have gone backwards this season, while others continue to battle inconsistency, form and injury.
Richmond supporters are weary. They are exhausted. They are almost bereft of hope. Many are disenfranchised.
The Richmond executive team crave stability at the expense of all else. The off-field has flourished among financial growth and tackling of a great number of social issues. The football department comes off as a minority group, and the odd one out in its failure.
But coaches don’t come back from this. The ugly and inept type of football that has been played, and the maulings that have been suffered. And when all hope is lost, these sort of losses will keep coming.
Hardwick has had seven years. Many coaches don’t even get half of that before they’re shown the door. He’s had a fair run, and has some positive attributes, but has too often looked out of ideas, and is unable to inspire supporters or convince the people that he can take them to the promised land. Rarely do you learn anything about the game when he speaks.
We’ve seen the spike a new coach can make in recent times. Chris Scott taking a falling 2010 Geelong to a flag in 2011. Ken Hinkley and Luke Beveridge both walked into a trainwreck, and coached Port and the Bulldogs to immediate back-to-back finals.
If Richmond starts slowly again next year (and how could you back against anything else?) Hardwick will be sacked and we all know it. He’s a dead man coaching.
Just like everyone knew Mick Malthouse would be sacked last year. Just like we all knew Mark Neeld would be sacked when he was. Scott Watters. It became inevitable with James Hird. We all know what fate awaits Justin Leppitsch too, whether it is in days, weeks, a month or next year. He will not last.
The biggest fear of Richmond fans is that Hardwick is allowed to coach next year, only to be inevitably sacked when things go south, wasting another year to follow on from this one.
The Tigers are to be commended for seeking stability in tumultuous times. But accepting mediocrity for the sake of it is no virtue. It’s time for Hardwick to go.
joe esler
Guest
ha ha
pioneer
Guest
Hope they keep Hardwick. Then the Tigers will stay as just they are - sometimes great, sometimes bad, but mostly just mediocre. It's amazing how clubs like Richmond, with so many rusted-on supporters (and all the income that comes from that) just can't get it together. The supposedly everyone's favourite other team (not mine) at times shows so much promise - who else regularly beats Hawthorn (well, not lately!) and Sydney - and then struggles either to make the finals, or to have any impact in the finals? And where's the excuse? They can't really blame the expansion clubs. The Tigers have had their fair share of high draft picks, they've got plenty of cash and the club has a stable administration with excellent training facilities, their fans will front up no matter what, and they've got five of the best players in the league. How are you not a powerhouse club given those circumstances? You'd rather be a Melbourne or Brisbane supporter - at least then you won't have your hopes raised every year only to see them dashed. Were I a Richmond fan I'd have microwaved my membership a long time ago.
JamesH
Roar Guru
Actually he left Carlton FOR Melbourne. But caveat emptor probably applies even more to ex-blues.
Simon
Guest
Dimma needs to be a part of a wider cleanout. The recruiting has been awful. Dusty the last A grader added to the list and that was 6 years ago. 6 years of wasted drafting since. As has been widely commented on, beyond the big 5 we drop off way too far. The gap between say a Cotchin and a Miles or Edwards (comparing say number 5 to number 6) is massive. Since then nothing approaching an A grader has walked through our doors.There is talk of the great kids we have, but are they any better than those on any other list? Which of them will step up and join the big 5? And then there is the lack of talls. We have Rance and Jack and then.....? Zilch, nada, nothing. List management has been woeful. Recruiting and development is the key problem and has been since the war with Collingwood back in the early 1980s. Simply replacing Hardwick is like shuffling the deckchairs on the titanic.
MG
Roar Rookie
but it will cost them $1million? Maybe offer Roos $2million per year for three years.
Milo
Roar Rookie
Thanks for the chuckle BFS. We could trade most of the playing group out and picks and still not get those four. Prestia is a real chance but the others are unlikely. As for this Knighta thing, Id hope and believe any replacement will be put through an extremely tough due diligence process. Sure Knighta could be involved but there's others who could be better.
big four sticks
Guest
He must go now. Get rid of the assistant coaches as well. We have had the same stale coaching staff for years, only having moved on Ben Rutten. Matthew Knights must lead our resurgence next year. There is nothing wrong with the majority of our list, we just need to top it up with Hurley, Tomlinson, Prestia, and O'Meara. We don't need a rebuild but a coaching overhaul.
Keith Martine
Roar Rookie
Your article Cameron and Steele's response sort of cover most of the issues and offers some solutions I think most members would be comfortable with. I too saw that game against Carlton in 2013. Occasionally since then they have produced the game style of the first half and one is left to wonder each other week how come that game plan has disappeared? It seems everybody but the brains trust at Tigerland can see how they should play and so when the question is asked, why not? I'm sorry but it has to be the senior coach. Is it just me but I see that teams without Hawthorns absolute skills that are successful get ahead by playing a ballistic, helter skelter never stop hand balling and running attacking style, circa Tigers first half against Carlton 2013. The Swans & Bulldogs being good examples. I certainly agree that the addition of only a few selected quality players would have a significant impact, if accompanied by an intellectual depth of thinking so far absent in the current coach's time.
andrew
Guest
as a north fan, id trade our first round pick to get him, which will be about 12-16, or thereabouts. this sort of puts ellis at about par value, as he was pick 15 himself, so atleast he has 'retained' his value.
Cameron Rose
Expert
Yep, that's a good one.
Steele
Guest
Also, Richmond are one of those clubs that have been severely hampered by the expansion clubs introduction. The tigers have been perennially finishing mid table, which has been a disaster considering the dilution of talent by the time they get a pick. Timing is everything, the Hawks picked a good time to be successful as it's taken other clubs a lot longer to catch up than you would of thought. I kind of feel the way it was set up, helped the already powerful clubs sustain success for longer periods than we've seen before. Meanwhile the strugglers, such as my beloved Demons have stayed down a little longer than they would have in normal drafting scenarios. These are all excuses and I'm aware there are many other factors involved, but it has been fairly significant in my opinion.
Barry
Guest
Like the Hawthorn Model of the last 6 years, cherry pick the ones you need to fill gaps " ASAP ".. Except the Tiges need to cherry pick at least ten 23 to 27 year olds ( mature bodies) ,.Not one or two like the Hawks did ..The Tiges have a lot of wholes to plug unfortunatley.. Maybe look at the SAFL OR WAFL or VFL for some tougher older rugged harder types and give em a go.... I think Poppy was plucked out of the SAFL at 23....Could be wrong.. Alastair liked his effort and toughness I presume ..
Rich_daddy
Roar Guru
As an aside point, If Hardwick is sacked, in terms of consistency shouldn't Buckley also be given the flick at Collingwood? The pies will miss finals for the third straight year. Buckley took over the side when they were at their peak and it has been a slow decline ever since. I don't have anything against either coach but if you look at their respective performances over the past 3 seasons, Hardwick is a mile in front of Buckley yet it is former that is under pressure while the latter gets a contract extension! If only Hardwick had the same love child relationship with Brendan Gale.....
Milo
Roar Rookie
Excellent observation Birdman.
Birdman
Guest
I agree that if he can't change then he deserves his fate. I'd also make the observation that being the first of Clarko's apprentices to land a senior job, Dimma might have missed some of the lessons that Clarko learnt himself from 2009 on including the need to adjust and modify your approach to team management and game plan.
Cameron Rose
Expert
Thanks Steele. Hopefully your first name is Jack and you want to come to Tigerland next year. All excellent points, and I agree about the same problems. The depth always looks thin when any team is badly out of form, confidence and belief. I doubt the lower tiers at the Tigers right now are much, if any different to other clubs that have risen up quickly. But I can certainly understand those that hold that view. I guess I just feel it's more a case of media groupthink than actual reality. Supporters of each club know more about their team than any media person though, so I always take notice when they say something.
Cameron Rose
Expert
Plus Geelong had finished top four one of those years, and won finals in each season. I get the comparison, but Thompson surviving and Geelong flourishing is a rare example. Hardwick doesn't inspire confidence that he knows what he's talking about or what he's doing.
Cameron Rose
Expert
I'm hopeless with those sort of judgements Andrew. In the right side (like Richmond was in 2013-14), he can be very dangerous on the outside and gather huge amounts of football. He'd be a perfect cog at Hawthorn if Hill leaves. I'd take lower than others, but you'd set the line at pick 20 or something like that I reckon?
Cameron Rose
Expert
I don't believe Dimma has the confidence or personality to demand those things. He doesn't even have the faith of his own convictions, because he hardly knows what those convictions are.
Milo
Roar Rookie
No comparison. Geelong finished just outside the 8, with about 10 wins and heaps of talent. Maybe Rance for Scarlett and Martin for Ablett (at a pinch) but there the talent comparison runs fairly thin. Lets try some other names: Bartel, Johnson, Ling, Enright, Corey, Lonergen, Kelly, Milburn, Ottens, Rooke, Mooney, Stokes, Varcoe, Harley, Wojcinski for starters... Whatever youre on, i'll take a dozen!!!