In the lead-up to the start of Richmond’s 2025 season, senior coach Adem Yze provided a snapshot of the progress of the Club’s big batch of talented new draftees on the Talking Tigers podcast.

Sam Lalor

“There’s a reason why he’s the number one pick, and it’s not just his talent on the field. He’s just a great character and a great teammate. He’s so diligent. He wants to be the best player he can be, and we’re starting to see that. He hasn’t done a pre-season (previously), he’d normally play cricket in his off-season. He’s just done it all on pure talent. He was so unlucky getting hurt when he did but even seeing how quick he’s recovering and responding to that, it’s been enormous.”

Josh Smillie

“Really similar (to Lalor). He’s been a captain of Vic Metro and most of the teams he’s played for he’s been a captain. And that’s shining through as well. He’s a big body. They (Smillie and Lalor) are men, they’re ready to play. He’s obviously had a little bit of a hiccup (hamstring issue), but up until then he hadn’t missed a beat. They (Smillie and Lalor) have been sponges, walking around the building. They’re learning off our older players, which is awesome.”

Taj Hotton

“Taj is a high talent. I saw him first-hand playing against my son last year. His first five games last year were enormous. We lose a really talented player in Shai (Bolton) and Taj has got really similar qualities . . . He can take a big grab, and his awareness around stoppage and around contest is really super. We can’t wait to get him out there.”

Jonty Faull

“We’re holding him back a little bit because the kid is a competitor. He wants to hit bodies and that’s the reason why he went so high (in the national draft) . . . other teams rated him really high. He’s in a good spot, almost full training now. He’ll most likely be available Round 3 or 4 of the AFL program. We need to get him into the program, start feeling bodies. As I said, if there’s a pack there, he’ll try and crash every single one of them. He’s a great kid, and he’s a sponge as well . . .”

Luke Trainor

“Throwing ‘Lukey’ into our back end, he’s got some support. He’s playing beside Nick Vlastuin, Nathan Broad, Jayden Short and Ben Miller, and you’re going to have Noah Balta there. We’ve got a pretty experienced back end, so he just blends in with that. He’s always got these leaders around him. Lukey’s a high-talented player. His IQ out on the field is next level. He plays tall, he plays small. He’s got a massive engine and he’s such a neat finisher . . . he doesn’t miss a kick. And his decision-making is outstanding.”

Harry Armstrong

“Harry’s growing into his body. His body shape has changed already, and he’s only been at the Club three months. He’ll get an opportunity early, based on the fact we are young in our front end and he hasn’t missed a beat. We won’t throw any of our young boys out there if they’re not ready. But we looked at some vision from the game against Collingwood and we highlighted some of the things he did without the ball and some of the contests . . . What we do value is the contest he’s providing. Our ‘smalls’ will get to work underneath him. And there’ll be days when they (marks) do start to stick . . . He’s a good finisher, too.”

Tom Sims

“He’s been impressive. We thought he might take a little bit longer to fill into his body and understand AFL standards, but he’s been impressive with his forward-line craft, his work-rate, and he likes to crash a pack as well. The fact that he can play second ruck, he’s probably going to push closer to selection than a couple of the others. So, he’s in a good spot . . .”

Jasper Alger

“Jasper had a bit of a hiccup, he tweaked his knee in our first intra-club game, but since then he hasn’t missed a beat. He’s a clever forward. I saw him first-hand last year. He played for Caulfield (Grammar) with my young fella. He’s highly talented. Can mark it, can ‘crumb’, and he’s got a big tank . . . He’ll get an opportunity at some stage, but right now, based on his training load, he’d more likely be at VFL to start.”