HERE'S a riddle for you – is it harder to move up eight places on the AFL ladder, or just one place?

In 2008, the Tigers moved from 16th to ninth. In 2009, they need to move at least one further place up the ladder to play finals.

But coach Terry Wallace says moving to ninth – so often a resting place for Richmond teams in the last decade – was the easy bit compared to the job that faces his team next year.

"Sixteenth to ninth is a lot easier than ninth to eighth," he told richmondfc.com.au. "No-one's going to give up their spot in finals for nothing.

"You only have to see the last part of the year – sides that were second and third were losing games, sides that were eighth or seventh wouldn't lose no matter what happened.

"We were sitting there witnessing it – they weren't going to lose to anyone, because no-one wants to give up their chance."

And the positive momentum gained from the significant move up the table is no guarantee of a finals berth next year, with Wallace able to easily prove movement in either direction for the following year.

"I can show you figures – and I've spoken to the players about this at the best-and-fairest – on sides, with Fremantle being one of them, over the last three years who finished the season strongly without making the finals, who went on and had really successful years the following year.

"So it's there, and that ought to give you confidence in that if you do that, you should have the ability to go on with it.

"But equally, I can show you since the final eight has been in, the ninth side, fairly much 50 per cent of the time they've gone backwards, and 50 per cent of the time they've gone forwards.

"So there are no guarantees.

"You take confidence in being able to go after something, but if you just think it's going to happen, you're kidding yourself."