Troy Chaplin’s slow start to football life at Richmond, after crossing from Port Adelaide as a restricted free agent in late 2012, proved to be a blessing in disguise for the experienced league defender.

Chaplin was forced to ease his way in with the Tigers, while recovering from knee surgery.

Rather than that being a setback, however, Chaplin turned it into a positive.

At the end of his first season at Tigerland, Chaplin was rewarded for his consistently impressive form in the team’s backline, with third placing in the 2013 Jack Dyer Medal.

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Last week, the 27-year-old (he turns 28 next Sunday) veteran of 162 league games, received further recognition from his adopted club when he was voted into the playing leadership group.

Chaplin reflected on his first year and a bit with Richmond in an interview on SEN’s “Morning Glory” today . . .

“I was in rehab. at first and probably the thing that really helped me was there were a few senior guys in there in Jack (Riewoldt), ‘Axel’ Foley, ‘Lids’ (Brett Deledio), ‘Kingy’ (Jake King) and big Ivan (Maric).  So you sort of got to hang around with the old guys and settle in a bit easier,” Chaplin said.

“For the first few months, it was just sit back and get a feel for the place, to see how it worked . . . what players were like, and who spoke up in meetings.

“You get an idea of how guys receive feedback and whether you need to put your arm around them, pump them up, or you can be a little bit firmer with them.

“The first few months were also about understanding their game plan because every club’s different.

“But once I got a feel for it, then it was just be your normal self, speak up as much as possible and don’t hold it back.

“I got really encouraged by the coaches to do that because they see me as an experienced player, and an old head amongst the younger group.

“So, that was probably the main focus for me when I first got to the Club.”