Does seem that way pablo.

I agree. That is an advantage to Richmond now,but,up until 2018 Richmond were playing lots of games at Geel while other teams were not having to play there at all. Still an advantage to Richmond tho. I understand.

Hardwick was asked the question and he answered honestly. Why should a team not be allowed to play a home game at their homeground? The other 3 MCG tenants also have to play a homegame at Marvel-Docklands every season (from what I understand), so it’s not just Richmond,but Tiges should be able to play at the MCG. The reason is money. And after covid,teams are hanging out for money and Tiges say they have lost a few hundred thousand by game not being at MCG. I don’t know how true that is but that’s what’s been said.

In regard to Richmond being gifted things by AFL,they are “gifted” a grand final at their homeground if they are good enough to make it. I believe that is flat out wrong. The AFL should be playing the grand final on a neutral ground at least. I completely understand other fans of teams that aren’t MCG tenants being angry about that. It’s not right. However,it’s not as bad a deal as what some fans make out,as fans of the non-MCG tenant teams have the opportunity to go and barrack for their team. Still,it is wrong I believe. It shouldn’t matter that the MCG is considered to be the home of football by the AFL. Competition integrity should override that.

What other gifts do Richmond get from the AFL Larrikin?

Lest we forget Ritchie.

I agree Ukraine Tiger.

From what I’ve seen teams like West Coast and Geelong do ok from a draw point of view during home and away.

Oh,I got that wrong. Yeah,it was a mark paid to Sheed and not a free. To me it should’ve been a free to Coll as Coll player impeded in going for the mark it looked to me.

Oh right NC. Yeah I know what you mean now about Eagles 2018-that free kuck. Yeah,I don’t think it should’ve been a free. That was lucky for the Eagles. But,I didn’t hear any post match talk that Eagles had an unfair good run with frees,and they were playing Coll at MCG so I still think it was a well deserved premiership. Yeah,but I get where you are coming from.I don’t think it should’ve been a free kick to Eagles.

I can’t agree with the first part of your comment NC but definitely have dropped off in 19 and 20 in dropping home games they were expected to win-Hawks in 19 when a top 4 spot was up for grabs and the 2020 thrashing by Collingwood. Was it to do with attitude,ageing stars,injuries,a mix of all that? They can play blistering footy when on. I remember late in 19 when they trounced the Tigers in the first quarter at MCG. Best quarter of the year some were saying. But,not long after that they were easily defeated by the Hawks at home. Have become a little bit of a flakey side lately. Couldn’t be sure what they were going to serve up.

Regarding 2018,they beat an MCG tenant in the grand final that had trounced the top of the ladder Tiges the week before,so,well deserved 18 premiership in my book.

This year? Like some others here,I don’t agree with the author that they are exactly a dark horse. Have maybe been too good over the past few years to be considered that.

Just in the last few days I read a comment somewhere that Geel would’ve won if it hadn’t rained. I didn’t know that it had rained,but,even if it did,footy is a winter game. A low-risk hold-possession gameplan can be risky
with a slippery ball.

The stat is real Seymour. Over the past few seasons West Coast has been an outlier when compared to other non_Vic teams with free kick diff at home. The stat doesn’t prove anything but it is evidence that the noise of affirmation may be stronger at Eagle’s home games.

Richmond don’t do well in the free kick stakes so getting free kicks is not necessarily about whether the team is good or not.

West Coast I believe are disadvantaged in 2 main ways:

1: If they make a grand final,they have to play it at MCG. I believe this is wrong if it is against a Vic side.
It is unfair to West Coast. Having said that,it is not as bad as what some make out as thousand’s of Eagles fans come over on gf day so Vic side doesn’t have the normal home and away crowd support they’d normally get.

2 More travel than any other teams besides Freo. We guess that could cause a drop off in performance as season wears on and poss shorten West Coast careers. However,a while back I looked into Eagle’s performance between first halves of seasons and second halves going back to 87,and there is a drop off in performance,but,not as much as you might expect. Eagles on ave performed about 1.4 premiership points worse in their 2nd halves of season compared to first halves
of season. I didn’t double check this result so maybe you could go back and check to confirm). Anyway,I did find a drop off in performance but it was less than 2 premiership points.

It was IAP that got me onto the West Coast free kicks at home differential. Is that you WASS? 🙂 . I had no idea that West Coast were such an outlier.

We’ll never know for sure Kev but I’m pretty sure if 89 Hawk’s came up against 2020 Tiges under 80’s rules,the Hawks would not know what had hit them.

Wonderful teams those Hawthorn teams of the 80’s. Possibly the best teams of any teams in history,but Kev,really?

Mmmm,the Tiges do like to play to the edge when it comes to the rules and in general they get penalised more than other teams as a result. I could just imagine the freedom the Tiges players would suddenly feel if they could play to 1980’s rules.

I’m pretty sure it would be a shellacking.

I have just loved the way the Tiges players have gone about things over the past 4 years. All the little things that we were told to do when playing growing up these Tiges players do plus so much more. Champion Data Supercoach Points be damned.

Yeah,my memory of the 89 gf is that the scores didn’t get close until the end and that Geel were constantly behind the eight ball in the 2nd half to try and peg back the deficit in time. The gf may be great for other reasons but my memory is that the Hawks to me were mostly comfortably ahead.

Just a side note about stats/meaningless stats – the Tiges don’t tend to rack up lots of Champ Data Supercoach points. What this tells me is that Champ Data still has a fair way to go in building a points model that actually reflects reality. There may be other teams as well but I’m a Tiges fan so I’ve only really looked at Richmond so far.

Peter,I just don’t think that Mark McGough is a good example.

What do Collingwood fans think of Mark McGough? I think he was a good player who achieved more in the game than most of us here will ever achieve. But,

what would Collingwood fans think of Mark if that 2002 Anzac Day game had actually been the 2002 Grand Final with Collingwood winning it.

I think you should just be giving some credit where it’s due,even if you don’t totally agree with me,Realist,and others.

Cmon Pete,not a bad effort by the Tiges and Marlion surely?

Yep Realist.

Sometimes fans of other teams should just give credit where it’s due when something well done is achieved by another club.

I’m sorry Peter. I misread your post.

I still think you are still wrong though.

Stangely enough,the other Richmond players were also apparently playing against “witches hats”, and yet few of them did as well as marlion Pickett.

Mind you,he made a couple of GWS players look like witches hats in the 2nd quarter.

It does seem to be that way Realist.

Richmond deserved to win the 2019 premiership “witches hats” or no ‘witches hats”.

One winning grand final where he was in the best players on the ground and who was picked up in the 2019 ROOKIE draft at number 12. That is good enough for me no matter how many times you tell me I’m wrong.

I didn’t say that Marlion was significant to winning the flag Peter.

Great recruiting by Richmond though.

Umm,and a guy who went at number 12 in the mid-season draft called Marlion.

Yep,almost a third of the 2019 premiership side consisted of rookies and pre-season draftees.

5 rookies
2 pre-season draftees

Just want to clarify the comment I made about Richmond being the first VFL club to crack the home game crowd average of 50,000 in 1980:-

That wasn’t meant to be a boast. Not that hard to be number one for home crowds in 1980 when your team won it, and only one other club had the MCG as it’s home crowd. I said that to show that Richmond had to win the premiership in order to hit the 50,000 ave home attendance figure back in 1980. Far from a routine scenario that Essence was inferring even when Richmond were up the top,let alone when Richmond were down the ladder.

For the record,according to AFL Tables Collingwood hold the record for the highest average home crowds and have the 2nd highest as well:-

2010 – 63256
2011 – 61488

I had another comment that hasn’t appeared so I’ll write a summary here-

Benny Gale had the courage to make public in early 2010 a 5 to 10 year plan as to where he and the club wanted the club to be come end of 2015 and end of 2020 (both on and off the field). Amidst the sniggers (some probably justified I know) Benny and Richmond held fast to their plan. They have one box yet to tick – 3 premierships by end of 2020. Even if they don’t get to tick that last box off, Benny and Richmond have done a great job

And also, after Benny arrived,the club’s drafting was compromised substantially by the introduction of GWS and Gold Coast. Now,every club ‘s national drafting was compromised by their introduction,but,if we work on the premise that those clubs with the earlier first round picks are compromised the most, Richmond were affected the third most behind Adelaide and Port Adelaide.

Or course it’s not just Benny. Far from it. It’s been a wonderful team effort. But,it was Benny who put the 10 year plan in place for Richmond in 2010.

The Age Mar 2010 – Michael Gleeson – “The Tigers are determined to rouse the sleeping giant of football and their dormant fans through their plan, which carries a motto of 3-0-75. The motto stands for playing finals three times, having zero debt and signing 75,000 members within the next five years.”

In 2010, according to Jon Pierik in The Age in May 2016, Benny Gale is quoted as also saying in 2010 – Said Gale in 2010 in the Tigers document: “By 2020, we aspire to have won our 13th premiership; consistently provide the most exciting and powerful match-day experience in the competition; once again have the strongest support base in the nation, and enjoy the strongest emotional connection with our members and fans. Premiership success is part of our DNA as a club so on that basis it is fair to say that we have been unsuccessful over the last 30 years … as much as it hurts me to say it, the fact is we have been a collective failure.”

The Tigers didn’t quite achieve the 5 year plan and are one short on premierships so far,but,if not genius, then very very good by Benny,and,talk about courageous. All the sniggering that went on after Benny’s 2010 comments (understandable to a degree I know), but Benny was extremely courageous putting the plan out there.

Wonderful job at at Richmond,and wonderful job Benny Gale.

Just a great effort by Brendon so far.