Craig McRae has provided an insight into the impressive turnaround of Richmond’s VFL program.
In the Tigers’ first season as a standalone VFL team, back in 2014, they finished 12th with six wins, one draw and 11 losses.
It was five wins, 13 losses and 13th place on the ladder in 2015, before McRae took over as their coach at the end of that season.
Last year, they just missed the finals after flying home with six consecutive victories, which took their overall 2016 tally to nine wins, nine losses and ninth place.
This season, Richmond’s VFL team is through to the grand final, against the competition’s perennial powerhouse Port Melbourne, at Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
“I couldn’t control what was the past, but we talked about creating high standards and getting the right guys in with the endeavour or the motivation to be hungry to improve. And then that real connection between the AFL and VFL,” McRae said.
“So that’s part of the foundations I tried to build.
“And we saw late last year our program shifted. We won six in-a-row to finish the year and just miss out on the eight . . .
“I think our VFL guys grew in stature from that part of the season last year and gained some momentum going into this year.”
