It’s 50 years today since one of the greatest comeback wins in Richmond’s history occurred.

On Anzac Day 1972, the Tigers met their MCG co-tenant Melbourne in a Round 5 fixture.

Richmond went into the match, which took place on a Tuesday, as a warm favourite, having won three of its four games to that stage of the season, while the Demons had just one win on the board.

Any thoughts of a stroll in the park for the Tigers, however, were quickly forgotten, as Melbourne seized the early initiative, grew in confidence, and looked almost certain of causing a big boilover when it led by 28 points at three quarter-time.

But Richmond refused to surrender. With terrific trio Royce Hart, Kevin Bartlett and Francis Bourke providing the inspiration, the Tigers charged home, scoring 6.4 to 1.1 in the final term, to snatch a stirring victory from the jaws of defeat.

Here’s how another top Tiger, Kevin Sheedy, recounted Richmond’s mighty, fighting win in his ‘From Inside The Fence’ column for ‘The Age’ newspaper the following day . . .

“We were lucky – and Melbourne was unfortunate.

That’s the whole story of yesterday’s game at the MCG.

We were lucky because any team which wins a game with only one good quarter of football has to be.

And Melbourne was unfortunate because it beat us to the ball for most of the day, was more determined for most of the day . . . and still lost.

We won the game in that last quarter because we have at least three champions, Kevin Bartlett, Royce Hart and Francis Bourke.

It was a great team effort for us to win, but without those three it would have been a waste of time.

Bartlett, in particular, started the last quarter as if he had been very late in arriving. After three hard quarters he suddenly got a new lease of life and must have had about 15 kicks.

Royce Hart, after being beaten for three quarters, proved that champions are never beaten. He got up, took marks – and look at those three goals he kicked – superb stuff!

Frank Bourke – well, he just battled and battled all day – so hard that he finally got on top and helped us to win the game.

We came back in that last quarter because of one thing – we knew that four premiership points were slipping away from us.

After our great game against Carlton on Saturday we just couldn’t afford that!

Full credit to Melbourne. We were outmarked for three quarters by blokes half our size. They seemed to be always in front in the race to the ball, and they wanted to win.

But they folded under the intense pressure we put on them in the last quarter.

Most of their players missed easy marks; began to fumble and lost the pace they had had earlier.

Another difference was the kicking. Our long kicks always landed the ball in the forward zone, but Melbourne’s short-passing, which took two or three kicks to get to the goals, always gave our backmen a chance of intercepting.

But Melbourne was still unlucky. I can tell you it was a bloody hard game, and that side will trouble everyone it plays this season.

They’ve got some really good players – Greg Parke, Peter Keenan, Gary Hardeman and Ross Dillon.

Parke was the main reason Melbourne led us for most of the game.

He marked as well as any full-forward I have seen and I’ve seen a fair few – and his 5.5 at half-time was a pretty good indication of his play.

Keenan will become one of the best ruckmen in the game. He has the ability, and because of the work he has to do, he’ll make it.

Hardeman beat Hart for three quarters, and what happened in the last quarter, when Royce went berserk, was not his fault.

But Tom Hafey’s changes in the second half – I went to the centre, Greg Hollick to a back pocket, Ray Boyanich into a roaming defensive role, Kevin Morris on to the ball – made all the difference.

When we started to lift our game in the third quarter, I knew we could win.

I’d like to say a word about Marty McMillan. In his first full game he made mistakes, but he went in hard for the entire game. That is the type of player we need at Richmond – and he’ll be a star of the future.”

Match details

Richmond         2.2       5.3       7.7       13.11 (89)
Melbourne       4.6       9.8       11.11    12.12 (84)

Goals – Richmond: Hart 4, Richardson 3, Dean 2, McMillan, Roberts, Balme, Bartlett.
Goals – Melbourne: Parke 5, Gallus 2, Wells, Alves, Dillon, Callery, McSpeerin.

Best (by Peter McFarlane) – Richmond: Clay, Sheedy, Bourke, Bartlett, McMillan, Hart.
Best – Melbourne: Molloy, Walker, Hardeman, Sullivan, Parke, Callery.

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