The ruck duel between Richmond’s Shaun Hampson and Brisbane’s Stefan Martin looms as the key match-up of Saturday afternoon’s Round 14 battle between the two teams at the MCG.
Hampson is in career-best form, and has established himself as the Tigers’ No. 1 ruckman, while the athletic Martin is looking more like the player that was an equal-winner of the Lions’ Best and Fairest award last year.
“He’s (Martin) getting back to the form he showed the last few years . . . Hopefully we can just curb him a little bit,” Richmond assistant coach Ross Smith said on this week’s edition of Roar Vision’s ‘Opposition Analysis’.
“We’ve certainly got the right man for the job at the moment.
“Shaun is in stellar form. He’s giving us a lot of first use to our midfield and has been fantastic for us in the middle.
“But Martin’s a good, mobile ruckman, and certainly will test Shaun’s engine out this week.”
Tough Lion Mitch Robinson also has figured prominently in Richmond’s planning for the match, given how well he’s adapted to his new role as a run-with player.
“He’s going to the (opposition’s) most valuable players and doing a great job, not only in stopping them, but getting a lot of the footy himself (he’s averaging 29 disposals per match over the past month),” Smith said.
“It’s going to be interesting to see where he goes this week.
“I suppose if you’re going to go strictly on form right now, it’s probably (Dustin) Martin. His form for us has been so powerful . . .
“If he goes to Dusty, it’s going to be a fairly fiery contest, I reckon . . .”
Talented midfielder Daniel Rich is another Brisbane player the Tigers will be keeping a close eye on.
“This guy’s so damaging – certainly by foot,” Smith said.
“He can kick the ball fairly long, but he’s actually got some quite good touch with his ball use . . .
“So, he’s a really important cog for them.”
