Richmond’s star ruckman Ivan Maric has a firm opinion on how the Tigers have been able to turn their on-field fortunes around in such stunning style over the past couple of months . . .

“I think the most important part of our game, or the reason we’ve had success, is our defence, and playing two-way football,” Maric said.

“When we’ve defended well, it’s set us up to have good attacking options.

“You hear all the other good (AFL) teams talk about it . . . Defence first, then it makes offense a lot easier.

“You look at other sports, whether it’s the San Antonio Spurs (NBA), or even in English Premier League, and you see teams that are defending well, they’re causing turnovers closer to goal, and they’re able to score.”

The statistical numbers back up Maric’s assertion that a vastly-improved defence has been a key factor in Richmond’s resurgence.

Throughout the Tigers’ nine-game winning streak, they have conceded 100-points or more just once – the Round 17 victory over Port Adelaide (106).

They are averaging a miserly average of 69.2 points against in those nine consecutive wins.