Star Richmond midfielder Trent Cotchin attributes the key factor in the Tigers’ steady climb, during Damien Hardwick’s tenure as coach, to structures.

“Once Damien Hardwick came in, we had to go back to come forward.  We knew that and we knew we had to change the way we were playing and the structures,” Cotchin said last night on Fox Footy’s ‘On The Couch’.

“He (Hardwick) came from Hawthorn, who had a lot of success with their defensive press and so forth.

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“A lot of work went into our pre-seasons, where we spent two or three hours on the track just learning different areas of the game, whether it was our full-ground press or stoppage set-ups.  It was so much detail, especially for a young group to take in . . .
“To have new players coming in and having to learn that every year is going to take time.

“It’s been a long road, but we’re starting to see the signs.

“Last year we were a little bit disappointed with the amount of wins we had.  And, after coming up against some really good sides early in the season and not quite getting the result, taking Hawthorn’s scalp on Saturday was a fantastic reward for the guys and their output . . .

“Knowing what we need to do to take it up to those top sides is helping us believe in ourselves and having other people believe in us, too.”

To watch the video, click play above