Dion Prestia produced another midfield masterclass for Richmond in today’s 61-point, finals-clinching victory over Hawthorn at the MCG.

The triple Tiger premiership star dominated throughout the four quarters, finishing the match with 30 disposals, 16 contested possessions, a game-high 11 clearances, game-high five centre clearances, game-high six stoppage clearances, two goals, seven score involvements, four tackles and 436 metres gained.

Prestia drew plenty of praise post-match from Richmond coach Damien Hardwick.

“He’s just crucial to have on the park. Good players don’t grow on trees, especially ones that can transition the way Dion does, and the way he goes about his footy,” Hardwick said in his press conference.

“His ability to bring others into the game is really important.

“We get to see it every week and it’s great to see 60,000 people here today to witness what a great player he is and what a significant contributor he’s been to our footy club since he got here.

“We value him highly in a lot of aspects of his game. . . I think probably outside of our four walls, so to speak, he’s regarded, but he’s not as highly regarded as what we see . . .

“He’s a Best and Fairest winner in a premiership year (2019) and if you think about it, he’s had significant injury over the last couple (of years), but on average, he probably wins those Best and Fairests if he had have played.

“So, we know how good a player he is and it’s important, I think, people are starting to understand what value this guy brings to our footy club.”

This season, Prestia is averaging 25.2 disposals, 11.7 contested possessions, 6.0 clearances, 3.8 inside-50s, 6.0 score involvements, 3.3 marks, 3.1 tackles and 382.4 metres gained per game.