The leadership displayed by Richmond captain Trent Cotchin has been a key factor in the Tigers’ form turnaround throughout the second half of the 2014 season, according to teammate and gun forward Jack Riewoldt.
“I think we’ve developed a bit of a steely resolve, and most of the credit’s got to go to the captain,” Riewoldt said on Triple M.
“He’s the one that’s stood up and grabbed the group by the scruff of the neck, along with Ivan (Maric) and the rest of our leadership group, and said, ‘Boys, we’re not copping this . . . this is where we need to get better’.
“We’ve done a lot of personal feedback over the last three months and some of it’s been public, in terms of us talking to Trent and telling him we want him to demand more from us.
“As well, we said to ‘Milesy’ (Anthony Miles) after a poor game last week (against GWS) that we needed him to stand up.
“That really in-your-face feedback from your teammates can be confronting at times, but our leaders said that’s what they want us to do, and it shows a love and a care that they want everyone to get better.
“So, the credit’s got to be put on their shoulders because they’re the ones that have started to drag us back up the ladder.”