Richmond coach Damien Hardwick believes star Tigers midfielder Kane Lambert is a pioneer for small players with AFL aspirations that may initially be overlooked because of their lack of size.

That was the case for the 178 cm, 77kg Lambert, who wasn’t selected in six AFL national drafts and five rookie drafts, before Richmond eventually took him with its third pick (No. 46 overall) in the rookie draft at the end of 2014.

Lambert has since developed into one of the Tigers’ most important players due to his hard two-way running, ball-winning ability and slick disposal.

After playing a key role in Richmond’s 2017 premiership triumph, and subsequently finishing third in the Jack Dyer Medal, Lambert has taken his game to an even higher level this season.

He’s averaging 22.3 disposals per match and is ranked 10^th in the competition for score involvements.

“I was probably one of those people that you look at his size and you automatically think, not sure where he fits in an AFL mould. But the one thing he’s got is incredible key strengths,” Hardwick said following another top-class display by Lambert in last Friday night’s win against St Kilda.

“Every level he’s played at, he’s excelled at.

“It’s no coincidence . . . he works incredibly hard, he’s one of our best trainers, and he’s a great inspiration to those players that aren’t playing (AFL football) at the moment who are probably a little bit small in stature, but have got some key strengths.

“He plays to them every week.

“And there’s a young kid we’ve got in our ‘twos’, as well, Liam Baker, that’s probably a little bit similar.

“They’re the sort of players, as coaches, you love because they work incredibly hard, they’re no fuss, and they just love playing the game.

“We’re fortunate to have a number of those players . . .”