Richmond coach Damien Hardwick is fully aware of the magnitude of the assignment confronting the Tigers, in Friday night’s match against ladder leader Fremantle at Domain Stadium, but he’s confident they are equipped to take it right up to the premiership favorite.
“A side that’s undefeated, there’s probably no bigger challenge, especially at Subiaco,” Hardwick said.
“They’re playing some really good footy.
“The crucial thing for Fremantle is they’ve been starting incredibly well. You know, the gap at the end of the first quarter, generally, against the sides that they’ve played, has remained the same, apart from a couple of blowouts they’ve had.
“So, it’s really important for us to get off to a good start, as it is every week. But from our point of view, we’ll be putting everything we can into the start of the game.”
Hardwick expects defence to be a major factor in tomorrow night’s encounter.
“It’s going to be a defensive-minded game, from our point of view. But we think we’ve got enough calibre of players that can make sure we get that ball on the outside,” he said.
“What Freo do very well, is they press forward and then they collapse back . . .
“They’re really hard to get the ball out of the defensive 50, and they’re also really hard to score against. So, they’ve got a defensive game that is outstanding.
“But the fact of the matter is offensively they’ve improved also. So it’s going to be an enormous challenge for us, but we relish the opportunity.
“It’s against an outstanding organisation, and an outstanding footy team, and we’re really looking to thrive on the challenge.”
