“They’re a formidable force, there’s no doubt about that,” he said.
“The 40,000 that were there on the weekend (against Sydney) were certainly loud . . . We’re hoping for the same impact this week.“It’s going to be a great contest between the two armies of the sash and we hope our guys come out on top.
“Our supporters are certainly well behind us. There’s no doubt that when we’re kicking to that Punt Road end, towards the end, it certainly gets our sails up.
“So, if we can get as many supporters there as we can, it will be a formidable outfit to beat.”
Hardwick said the Tigers were eagerly anticipating Saturday’s night’s Dreamtime encounter.
“We look forward to the challenge and, hopefully, there will be 85,000 people there.
“Essendon’s playing some sensational footy. To beat the premiership favorites by 10 goals last week is a great result for them. We’re slowly finding our way . . . we’ve played some reasonable football.
“It’s an outstanding occasion and we hope to perform on the big stage.”
Hardwick also paid tribute to Richmond captain, Chris Newman, who will become the 24th player in Tigerland history to achieve the 200-game milestone, when he lines up against the Bombers on Saturday night.
“His influence on this group and our leadership group . . . has been paramount on the way we’ve hung in, we’ve hung tough,” he said.blog comments powered by Disqus
