Newly-appointed Richmond co vice-captain and star key forward Jack Riewoldt is keen to take a leaf out of star Tiger key defender Alex Rance’s leadership book.
Riewoldt has an extremely high regard for the way Rance has marshalled the defensive troops at Tigerland in recent seasons and he wants to follow suit with his role as leader of the forward line.
“The backline has probably been our real strength over the last two to three years, and Alex (Rance) has led that group down there sensationally,” Riewoldt said.
“I’m looking at that as the model for, selfishly, the forwards, and what I’d like to get out of our forward line.
“I think we’re starting to see some consistent performers down there . . .
“The midfield group’s depth is really helping the forwards as well, with the ability to swing guys like Trent (Cotchin) and Dustin (Martin) forward . . . I’m extremely grateful they’ve been able to help me out in my role.”
One young, tall Tiger forward that Riewoldt is particularly looking forward to helping develop to his full potential, is Mabior Chol.
The 20-year-old made his senior league debut with Richmond in the final home-and-away round last season against Sydney at the SCG, and he was an impressive performer in the Tigers’ recent final JLT Community Series match against Collingwood at Moe.
“He’s going to be a project player going forward for us, but he’s exciting and has a lot of natural talent,” Riewoldt said.
“It’s the job of the coaches, and mine as well, to refine that into the player the Club thinks he can be, which is a really exciting process.
“And he’s coming through with a crop of key forwards. Callum Moore’s another guy, Todd Elton’s been around for a little bit, but he’s starting to really grasp that, along with Ben (Griffiths) as well.
“So we’ve probably got four or five guys there that are looking to come up as a group together . . .
“Any way I can fast-track that, or use my experience to make sure they can turn into the players we believe they can be, I’m really excited about that.”
