A classic Sandringham day greeted Richmond VFL as it made the trip South to Trevor Barker Beach Oval to face a much-vaunted Zebras’ outfit.

The drizzly conditions couldn’t be starker than what the Tigers faced the week previous against Southport, however, the thirst for the contest and Richmond’s hunt carried over from Round 1.

The Tigers fought and scrapped against a Sandringham side that had the game on their terms for the majority of the day, going down by 54 points.

Richmond managed to match Sandringham for scoring shots for the first three quarters, with a five-goal final term by the Zebras seeing the final score read, 15.4 (94) to 5.10 (40).

The Zebras cashed in early up forward, slotting two majors before Tigers’ captain, Lachlan Street stood tall once again when his side needed him most.

With the Tigers toiling away without nourishment on the scoreboard, Street read a skewed Sandringham kick, plucked the intercept mark, crossed the paint of 50 and saluted as soon as the soggy Sherrin left his boot.

The Zebras answered Street’s goal soon after, then doubled down before Tyler Sonsie got the attending Tiger Army’s hands out of their pockets with a classic crumbing goal.

The wintery conditions seemed to suit Sonsie’s natural football traits, with the first-year midfielder handling the soapy ball as it was bone dry.

Sonsie tracked a high-ball inside 50, hit the drop-zone at speed, gathered and snapped on his left in a single motion, exciting the damp Richmond attendees.

The goal was kicked on the stroke of quarter-time, which saw Sandringham lead by nine points.

There’s a growing buzz about Sonsie, who knocks up winning the ball and using it with silk and precision.

The Zebras were faultless in front of goal, kicking six without a blemish, finishing the first half with seven majors and a 25-point lead at halftime.

Richmond’s effort and intensity around the contest and its want to spread and create from congestion couldn’t be faulted, however they found it tough going to gain the reward.

Bigoa Nyuon followed on from his staunch display in Round 1, holding down a key defensive post alongside Ben Miller who returned from a successful outing at AFL level.

Nyuon and VFL defender, Jackson Davies led with fists of defiance, however, at times the Zebras were too slick in attack.

Riley Collier-Dawkins, alongside Sonsie, utilised his hulking frame around the contest, feeding the ball to Richmond’s runners on the outside and surging the ball forward when his options dried up.

The Tigers shared the same amount of scoring shots (7.2 to 2.7) at halftime as their hosts, with avenues to goal harder to come by than those of Sandringham.

It was a similar story in the third term, with the Zebras adding three goals to their tally, as Noah Cumberland rewarded Tyler Sonsie for his neat pass, with Cumberland’s set-shot sailing through for the Tigers’ only goal first goal since quarter-time.

Rhyan Mansell’s iron will to thwart Sandringham’s attacking forays and then repel with venom shone brightest in the third term, as he ran himself ragged in an attempt to swing the momentum Richmond’s way.

Nyuon produced a couple of ball-busting spoils, one nearly launching the ball over the banksias onto the sand of Sandringham beach.

Will Martyn had a tough pre-season, battling glandular fever but ground his way back into form in the final term.

Martyn was redeployed down back, where, especially in the last quarter, he started to exude the traits that saw him win the 2021 Guinane Medal as Richmond VFL’s best and fairest.

It was a challenging day for the Tigers, however, that thirst for the contest was evident until the final siren.

A trait that they’ll need to build on during the week to take into their Round 3 clash against Footscray.

SAND: 4.0 7.3 10.4 15.4 (94)

RICH: 2.3 2.7 3.10 5.10 (40)

Goal Kickers:

Rich: Sonsie, Street, Cumberland, Ryan, Martyn