Punt Road Oval is an icon of the Richmond Football Club.

It is a place near and dear to all those who feel passionately about the Tigers – a veritable shrine to members of the Yellow and Black faith.

There is a connection bordering on the spiritual between Richmond fans and the ground that’s seen by tens of thousands of Melburnians each day, as they travel to and from the city.

From 1885, when the Club was formed, until 1964, Punt Road Oval was the venue for all of Richmond’s home games (firstly in the VFA, and then the VFL).

‘Bring the Roar Home’ with the Tigers and become a 2014 Richmond member today.

The ground consistently drew crowds of more than 20,000, with a record 46,000 spilling over the fence in a 1949 mid-season match against arch-rival Carlton.

Some of the greatest players in not only Richmond’s, but the game’s history, regularly graced the hallowed Punt Road Oval turf – the likes of Jack Dyer, Jack Titus, Vic Thorp, Percy Bentley, Bill Morris and Roy Wright.

Although Richmond hasn’t played a match at the ground for premiership points since 1964, it has clearly remained home to the Tiger Army over the past half-century.

Now, in 2014, big-time football is returning to the ME Bank Centre’s Punt Road Oval, with Richmond’s standalone VFL team preparing to play its home games at the iconic ground.

In the lead-up to that, over the next couple of weeks, richmondfc.com.au will crank up the Tiger Time Machine to bring you some of the major moments in Punt Road Oval’s mighty history.

We’ll kick off Monday, with a look at Richmond’s first VFA and VFL games at the ground.