Nathan Broad stepped up superbly to cover the absence of star defensive duo Dylan Grimes and Nick Vlastuin in Richmond’s decisive Round 2 victory over Greater Western Sydney at the MCG.

The triple premiership Tiger finished the match with an equal-second team-high 22 disposals, nine marks, six rebound-50s, five intercepts, four score involvements, five tackles and 371 metres gained.

Broad combined tight, defensive accountability with attacking aptitude in a performance that again underlined how under-rated he is, and how much of a draft bargain he’s proven to be for Richmond.

He was taken at pick 67 overall in the 2015 AFL national draft by the Tigers after they’d closely followed his progress at senior level with WAFL club Swan Districts.

Broad, who turns 29 next month, has now played a total of 86 games at Tigerland, with three premierships and a winning strike-rate of 73.8 percent as extremely impressive features of his AFL football CV.