Ruck coach Ivan Maric spoke to Richmond Media about the Round 4 loss to St Kilda and provided an update on the Tigers' ruck department in this week's edition of Coaches Corner, presented by Hostplus.

Toby Nankervis' outstanding return

"He certainly played to his strengths, (he was) really aggressive, competed well in the ruck and then his trademark second efforts, tackling and putting pressure on the opposition midfielders. It was a fantastic performance...It was good that his attitude was maintained (when he was out of the side) and he focused on just getting better. He's got an unbelievable character and he's much-loved throughout the football club. Everyone was really pleased for him to get an opportunity and to see him perform the way he did was fantastic."

Ivan Soldo's scratch match performance

"He approached (being omitted) with a really great attitude and was able to play a bit up forward and kicked a few goals, but played some minutes in the ruck as well, swapping with Callum Coleman-Jones. They were really good together...He put his talent and athleticism on show."

Callum Coleman-Jones's progress

"He's going really well. His ability to play up forward as a key position player is a huge strength of his and he can go in the ruck and give the midfielders first use. He's really developed those two aspects of his game. We just have to convince 'Dimma' to play two to three rucks!"

Noah Balta's recent form

"He's been really good (in the scratch matches). We know what he can do in the ruck so he's always got that in his back pocket. He's really been working closely with Dave Astbury and Dylan Grimes and they've been helping him out a fair bit developing as a key back... We need to be prepared for the future, that's really important. He's been playing some really good games. He's a pretty exciting player when he gets the ball and he's running out of the backline and using his right foot or left foot, and he's worked on his contested stuff as well. Hopefully he gets an opportunity."

Balta's versatility

"The game's changed a fair bit with the length of the game and people aren't getting as fatigued as what they were in previous seasons. So, we have to look at the way we pick the team and we don't just want to pick big guys for the sake of it, they really need to come in and perform. So, they all need to continue to work on their craft and hopefully we can get some big fellas in and they can have an impact and help the team. "