One advantage of watching AFL matches on television is the behind-the-scenes access to team dressing-rooms. Usually, this provides no great insight for viewers – highlights like the team prankster drilling a footy into his mate’s head, or the coolest player jiving along to the latest tunes on his iPod, are hilarious, but rare. However, the footage from Richmond’s dressing-room at AAMI Stadium last Saturday afternoon, just before the players ran out to do battle, provided great footage of each Tiger tapping a large sign above the door to the race, which simply said “HURT.”

What did it mean? Obviously not a reference to “emo culture” at Punt Road, that much I was sure of. No, this was Richmond’s inspiration – hurt for your teammates, put your body on the line, head over the ball, take the hits and go hard . . .

Of course, the team has a long way to go, and just adding hardness cannot guarantee much short-term success. But attacking the ball, being competitive and hurting is what must be instilled into the Tigers of 2007. These are the qualities that win premierships – just take a look at five minutes of football from West Coast, Sydney or Brisbane. This is what, historically, Richmond prides itself on – the “Eat ‘em Alive spirit!”

Despite all these positive vibes and inspiration, we are 0-7 after seven rounds. It hurts supporters to still be waiting for a tick in the win column in the middle of May, but I guess it is a sign of where our club is at . . . We are going out there with a young, inexperienced side, our leaders are battling form and injuries and, overall, it’s not a great mix to get a lot of wins in 2007.

Something tells me, however, this is the season we had to have. In past years, we have seen some good results, but these were false dawns because we still had gaping holes in the list and an unhealthy reliance on quick-fix, recycled players. Now, we are setting the path for the years to come, and even though the losses hurt, it will make our future success so much sweeter.

Our clash with Port Adelaide was another contrasting display . . . Sometimes, the Power looked like they would be tested more on the training track, while on other occasions, the Tigers were flying through the midfield and playing a very enjoyable brand of footy. But across the ground, we were simply overwhelmed by a very good team.

I took in the action from the comfort of my couch, feeling reasonably lonely without the Yellow and Black Army surrounding my seat. Theo and Baxter, my two pups, tried to fill the void, but didn’t provide much of an atmosphere as they lay fast asleep on my lap.

We started the match in the worst possible manner, barely racking up any possessions in the opening minutes and conceding a 14-point margin by the first break. Effort levels were definitely up, though, with the Tigers dominating the tackle count and winning their fair share of contested footy. But despite the positive endeavour, we still struggled in the most important stat – the scoreboard.

Again, it was Nathan Foley leading our resistance from the centre square. ‘Axel’ has become innately good at finding the football in any situation and, combined with much improved disposal and a willingness to break the lines, he has stamped himself as a prime mover and a key member of the Richmond side. Last Saturday, he had a good deal more support – Cam Howat had his best game in the Yellow and Black, while captain Kane Johnson won an entertaining battle with Shaun Burgoyne. But again, the side really missed injured ruckmen Troy Simmonds and Trent Knobel.

Port probably has the strongest ruck division in the land and, despite their efforts, Adam Pattison and ‘Richo’ found it hard to slow their progress from stoppages.

These holes in our side were particularly evident in the second quarter, as we slipped to a 43-point deficit by half-time. It wasn’t as if the Tigers didn’t have their chances though – we booted seven behinds for the quarter, and a number of careless turnovers became easy goals for the Power. This was frustrating, particularly when such mistakes were coming from a number of senior players. My constant moans and groans were certainly not appreciated by the two pups, who were still collapsed next to me on the couch.

Our second-half performance was pleasing, as we won it by three points. At various stages, the match threatened to spiral into another crushing defeat, but I think it was clear that the players had learnt a lot from the previous week and had the strength of character to keep fighting through. Brett Deledio typified this superbly, bouncing back from a shocker against the Cats to post 22 touches, with 17 marks and two goals. He managed to find the ball consistently, providing run out of defence in the first half and then giving the team’s midfielders a leading target up forward. Graham Polak had another excellent game in the backline on Warren Tredrea, and once the likes of Will Thursfield and Luke McGuane gain some experience, the defence looks quite solid behind our ‘quarterback’, Joel Bowden.

This week, we are back in Adelaide to take on the Crows on Friday night. As much as I can’t wait to head back down to the MCG, two weeks out of Melbourne is probably quite helpful for a team, which has been caught in the headlights recently. It will be a tough encounter, but we are much better for the last two weeks and are a definite chance. Shane Edwards is right in contention to play after dominating for Coburg last weekend, while Jack Riewoldt is again thereabouts. But maybe Terry Wallace will hold him back for a ‘Dean Polo-esque’ ‘Dreamtime at the G’ debut against the Bombers in two weeks time. I don’t mind when he plays, just as long as we get a win on the board soon.