In the football media’s assessment of how each AFL club fared in the 2021 trade/free agency period, one factor appears to have been forgotten, or ignored.
Putting any Richmond bias aside, it is patently clear that the Tigers secured the services of the best-credentialled, available player.
There was a total of 20 players who changed clubs this year, but only one with a Best and Fairest to his name, as well as more than 150 games of AFL experience, and a top-class, on-field reputation.
Robbie Tarrant, recruited by Richmond as part of the trade deal with North Melbourne for Callum Coleman-Jones, won the Kangaroos 2016 Best and Fairest award, he’s a veteran of 174 games, was named in an All-Australian squad (2016) and is regarded as one of the elite key defenders of the competition.
With all due respect to the other 19 players, Tarrant stands head and shoulders above them in terms of his football achievements at the game’s highest level.
Admittedly, Tarrant is a bit older than the others (he turns 33 next April), but he seemingly still has plenty of good football left in him, which makes him an excellent pick-up for the Tigers.
