Richmond senior coach Damien Hardwick says Sunday's Anzac Day Eve clash against the reigning premier will provide an indicator of where his side is at after an inconsistent start to the season. 

The Tigers have slipped to a 2-3 record ahead of their blockbuster match against Melbourne.

“It’s a great challenge . . . They’re playing some really good footy, able to score heavily at various stages . . . The way they play the game is a fantastic game to watch,” Hardwick said.

“We’re learning some things off them, the way they go about it. But, more importantly, it’s a great challenge for our players to get a real measure of where we’re at.

“We’ve been good at various stages this year and inconsistent at stages. But if we iron out that performance, we give ourselves every chance.

“We feel we’re not too far away. A lot of our indicators, there’s some really positive signs.

“There’s a couple of things we’ve got to improve, like most sides . . .

“We’re playing some reasonably good footy without getting the desired result for the four quarters.

“We’ll continue to challenge our players to get better, we’ll continue to get our side to gel . . .

“We’ve just got to continue to get our side to play together consistently for a period of time, and we think we’ll be okay.”

Kamdyn McIntosh will return after missing last week's loss to Adelaide through COVID-19 protocols and Kane Lambert is set to play his first senior match of the season.

Lambert has overcome a hip injury and has built his fitness on limited game time in the VFL over the past fortnight.

Hardwick is "very bullish" Lambert will be given the all-clear to take on the unbeaten Demons but concedes the midfielder won't be at peak fitness.

"He's a pretty fit guy overall, footy-wise he hasn't played a lot, but we're pretty confident that what he can bring is going to be pretty good," Hardwick said.

"He's just such an important guy to our club.

"He's a coach on and off the field and just a wonderful ambassador for us with the way he plays the game."

Richmond will consider recalling ruckman Ivan Soldo to help Toby Nankervis against Melbourne duo Max Gawn and Luke Jackson.

But Soldo needs to be cleared to play after spending time in hospital this week with an infected toe.