Triple Richmond premiership star key forward Jack Riewoldt will be hoping to emulate the dazzling deeds of Tiger ‘Immortal’ Kevin Bartlett in his 300th game, when he cracks the triple ton against Brisbane at Metricon Stadium tonight.
Bartlett reached the coveted 300-game milestone in Round 8 of the 1979 season v Footscray at the MCG on Saturday, May 26.
Richmond crushed the Bulldogs by 73 points – 22.26 (158) to 12.13 (85) – with the 32-year-old Bartlett playing yet another starring role for the team.
That was the season Bartlett made the transition from the Tigers’ terrific No. 1 rover to a small forward.
Bartlett’s performance on this momentous occasion in his illustrious league football career, showed just how well he had adapted to the new position.
He finished his 300th appearance at the game’s highest level with 24 disposals (18 kicks, six handballs!) and kicked five goals.
David Cloke and Bruce Tempany both also booted five goals in Richmond’s demolition of the Dogs.
Here is an extract from leading football writer Mike Sheahan’s match report in The Age newspaper, leading into praise for Bartlett’s impressive performance on the day . . .
“Richmond, restricted to two wins in the first seven rounds, had 48 scoring shots, kicked its highest score of the season, and should have won by at least 100 points.
The Richmond superiority was obvious from midway through the first quarter . . .
It was a real blast from the past for Richmond loyalists.
There they were, men of yellow and black, busy, confident, even cocky; and pounding those goals.
We knew it was coming from late in the first quarter when little “Hungry” speared through his second goal in four minutes, raised both fists in triumph and galloped upfield for the centre bounce.
Kevin Bartlett remains a key to Richmond.
He was one of three Richmond players to finish with five goals, a fine contribution from a champion rover allowed to agist in a forward pocket. And he gave a couple away, too . . .”
The two other 300-game players in Tigerland’s history – Jack Dyer and Francis Bourke – did not perform anywhere near as well as KB on their big milestone day.
Dyer’s 300th game was against North Melbourne at Arden Street in Round 3, 1949 on Saturday, April 30. The Tigers lost by 33 points – 9.5 (59) to 14.8 (92) – and the great “Captain Blood” (35 years, 166 days of age), who retired at the end of that season, managed only one goal and did not appear on the team’s best players’ list for the match.
Bourke’s 300-game milestone also was in a clash with the Kangaroos – Round 14 of the 1981 season at the MCG on Saturday, June 27. Richmond won by 43 points – 21.23 (149) to 15.16 (106) – with Jimmy Jess, five goals, Robert Wiley, four goals and Kevin Bartlett, three goals, leading the way on the scoring front.
In what turned out to be the last game of Bourke’s stellar career with the Tigers, he had just six disposals.
