Young Richmond defender Jake Batchelor has his sights firmly set on building on the gains he made during the second half of the 2014 season.

Batchelor didn’t break into the Tigers’ team until the Round 12 match against North Melbourne at Etihad Stadium, but he retained his spot for the rest of the season, producing solid form in the back half.

“It was probably my best season to date, in terms of consistency,” Batchelor told ‘Roar Vision’ in a special post-season interview.

“I played the last 13 games of AFL . . . I haven’t done that, due to my body and form, in previous years.

“So, that’s been a bit of maturity coming along.”

A key focus for Batchelor throughout the upcoming pre-season period, will be working on his running capacity.

“I’m not the best runner at the Club, so it’s a huge area of improvement for me.

“Hopefully, I can get to the half-back line and start to get a bit more run out of our defence, to help out Bachar (Houli) and ‘Newy’ (Chris Newman).

“I like to sift off and be able to take marks off opposition kicks.  So, I’m going to try and keep that in my game, and still be able to play on the smaller-type players.”

Batchelor is keen to cement his place in Richmond’s line-up from the outset next year.

“Basically, I just want to get in the team by Round 1 of the NAB Cup series and hold my spot for the rest of the season.

“I’ve given myself a good base to go from, but it’s just a base.

“I’m ready to take my game to the next level next year.”

Batchelor, 22, made his AFL debut with Richmond in 2011, after being taken by the Tigers at pick 30 overall in the 2010 National Draft.

He earned an AFL Rising Star nomination in 2011, and has played 52 games senior league games in total.