It’s game day, finally!
Today has certainly brought about a sense of relief.
In my time supporting Richmond (a very long 21 years), I can’t remember a week like the one that has just gone by.
It was a sterling victory by the boys and the coaching staff against Hawthorn, and I’ve gone on record saying it’s the best win I’ve ever seen.
There has been so much hype, mostly externally, from people who are not involved with the club in any way, and it just makes you think what will happen when this club actually is up there.
Damien Hardwick said it perfectly yesterday when asked if the Tigers midfield was the best in the league.
“It's a big call, especially after we've won one in a row and are sitting 12th on the ladder with only four wins.''
He’s getting good at this game our Dimma.
At least we know internally everything is a week by week proposition, and as Damien said, “we can only control what’s in our four walls”.
It’s a week that has been handled well by the Tigers, and as a fan, I am proud. The hardest challenge now is to go out and beat the Saints tonight.
It will be difficult.
It’s hard not to escape the fact that we haven’t beaten them since 2003, but does it really matter? No.
Chris Newman is the only player remaining from that winning side. How anyone can use that fact as a reason why we won’t beat St.Kilda tonight is beyond me.
When I’ve looked at Richmond games in the past, it’s often a question of how we’re going to stop the opposition.
Well, how is St.Kilda going to stop us?
It may seem a tad over the top, but that’s the way we should be looking at things.
Our first major win tonight is the fact Ivan Maric is in All-Australian form, and is up against, albeit an underrated player, in Jason Blake.
Now for a 191cm utility player, Blake had 31 hitouts last week. I’ll mention it was against Mike Pyke, however.
It’s a minor victory for Richmond already, without even stepping out on the ground.
The midfield battle is crucial tonight, as it is with every match these days.
Ivan can’t let Lenny Hayes, Jack Steven, Leigh Montagna and David Armitage get a good look.
What the Saints don’t lack is weaponry.
With the addition of Terry Milera and Ahmed Saad, they’ve bolstered their outside pace and it has trouble a lot of teams already.
The Tigers were too fleet of footy for the Hawks last week, so it will appear to be an intriguing battle.
Shane Tuck and Nathan Foley have been brilliant on the inside so they need to continue on that form and make use of Ivan’s tap work.
As far as midfield tagging goes, I wouldn’t bother with Lenny Hayes. He’ll get his hands on the ball regardless.
We haven’t really been putting hard tags on, but if we did I’d put someone on Dal Santo.
Last year Deledio went to Goddard, and smashed him. Under Watters, Goddard has been playing a lot behind the ball, so I don’t think we should waste Deledio in that match up. Let them put someone on to him.
Jack Steven is a guy that is really important to their midfield. He has that inside-out quality with his clearance work, but then he uses his elite pace on the outside. He can bust games open as he’s shown a few times this year, so we can’t afford to let him get off the chain.
Our backline has been the major strength this season. We can trust Alex Rance with Nick Riewoldt, and Steven Morris for Milne. I find Dea as a big loss, as he would’ve been a good match up for Milera, but luckily we have Batchelor back in the side.
It shapes up to be a really tight affair. If the Tigers grab hold of Maric’s distinct advantage in the ruck, they’ll be tough to beat.
Contested possessions and clearances are, as always, the key.
Go Tiges!
You can follow me on Twitter @KristianPisano
