It's a practice that brought him undone on one infamous occasion, when he clashed heads with Brisbane Lion Troy Selwood in round seven, 2009. Rance had to have plates and screws inserted into his cheekbone to repair three small cracks in his face.
Generally, however, his courage serves him well, and makes him a valuable player in the Richmond line-up.
Coach Damien Hardwick said Rance was "pretty good" in his performance on Sydney Swans captain Adam Goodes during the Swans' 10-point victory at the SCG on Sunday.
Hardwick was slightly reserved in his praise because Goodes played his part in the Swans' splurge early in the last quarter when they kicked four of their nine goals. It gave the Swans a four-goal buffer that was enough to get them home.
"He competes really well, Alex," Hardwick said. "He's still got a fair way to go, he still makes some blues, but I thought his competitive nature came out in the end.
"Goodesy, to his credit, when the game was there to be won, he was up and about. So it was probably a 50-50 game."
The possession count suggests a strong victory to Rance. He had 24 disposals (10 kicks and 14 handballs) to Goodes' 10, including only four to half-time.
Rance had nine contested possessions and laid six tackles.
But Goodes was a dangerous forward throughout. He took nine marks, including four inside 50. His tally of no goals and four behinds suggests a limited output, but the Tigers were always wary of his potential to influence the game, correctly as it turned out.
While Rance's application is never under question, his concentration sometimes wavers, as might be expected for a young defender making his way.
And sometimes he is simply too eager for his own good. In his desire to spoil Swans forward Sam Reid during Reid's purple patch in the second quarter, Rance tripped over himself and involuntarily pushed Reid in the back. Reid earned a free kick, which brought him only a behind.
Richmond lost two defenders on Sunday: Luke McGuane was withdrawn from the selected side (replaced by Jake Batchelor) while David Astbury dislocated his knee in the first quarter, ruling him out for the season.
Rance is going to have to play a prominent role in the depleted defence. You can be sure he'll be giving his all.
