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Brownlow Medal | 3 Dustin Martin (RICH) | 2 Trent Cotchin (RICH) | 1 Reece Conca (RICH) |
Although this match pitted last year’s premiers against the wooden spooners, most pundits thought that given Brisbane’s improved effort this year, albeit unrewarded after three rounds, the game would see a hard-fought contest. They were wrong. Few doubted a Richmond victory, but even fewer would have predicted the complete demolition that the mighty Tigers actually inflicted on the hapless Lions.
In front of a smallish crowd—by Richmond standards—of 32,870, and in far from ideal conditions, it having rained heavily before the game, the Tigers lead at every stage winning the match by 93 points. The most remarkable fact not being the margin, but the Lions' scoreline of only 2.5.17 at game’s end. It was their equal lowest score since 1988, the lowest in an AFL game since Fremantle posted 1.7.13 in 2009, and the lowest at the M.C.G since South Melbourne's 1.11.17 in 1962. Quite a clutch of unenviable records. And it could have been worse! It didn’t look like Brisbane was going to post a major at all, the first of two gaols coming late in the third quarter from a dribbler by Dayne Zorko.
The game opened at a fast pace and the Lions looked okay. After two minutes Charlie Cameron posted a behind to register the first score, and that was the high point of the afternoon for the men from the north. Two minutes later, Dustin Martin booted the Tigers first, the first of his six, and from that point on the premiers were away, never to headed again.
Goals to Jack Riewoldt, from a fine pack mark, and Josh Caddy, from a second 'pack screamer', set the standard for Tiger excellence, and these were followed by a second to Martin and another to Castgana, just before the bell. At the first change, Richmond led by 33 points and were cruising. Indeed, Brisbane hadn’t even looked like goaling.
The second quarter looked very similar to the first, with Castagna goaling early. Then the Lions fought back, bringing some extra pressure of their own to bear, but simply could not make it count on the scoreboard. Although they were able to limit Richmond to only three goals for the term, they were unable to mount an effective challenge on goal themselves. The Tigers defence, on the other hand, were able to throttle any attack and launch their own counter attacks without undue difficulty. Their lead was stretched further by goals to Jacob Townsend at the 10-minute mark, followed by the irrepressible Dusty after a powerful one-on-one win in the goal square. While the Lions manage to hold them out for the rest of the term, the 54-point margin at halftime signalled the game had already been decided.
For the third quarter in a row, Castagna got the ball rolling got Tigers, followed soon after by a strong Martin mark and goal. Halfway through the quarter it was another Martin bust out and fend off into open space that set up Lambert for the third major for the quarter. Again, the Lions were putting enough pressure on to stop a Tiger avalanche but doing next to nothing to create genuine scoring opportunities themselves, although desperate Richmond defence was also playing a significant part. It was not until late in the third, when finally, much to the relief of Brisbane players and supporters, Zorko got the breakthrough. Nankervis fumbled a mark, and the Lion star was on hand roving the pack to dribble it through, just before the bell.
The final quarter opened, as usual, with a Richmond goal, this time another from Martin, who was on a roll. Lion intensity stepped up, and for the next ten minutes they fought it out until reward came from the boot of Cameron Rayner who popped through their second after a strong mark. But that was to be it for Brisbane, who failed to follow through on the fightback they had threatened. The effort took its toll, and the Tigers slammed home four majors in the last ten minutes of the game, to Kane Lambert, to Dusty for his sixth after a ‘shocker’ Luke Hodge turnover, and twice to Townsend. In the end, the final margin was an accurate reflection of how the two teams approached the contest.
"If you’d said to me before the game we would win by 93 points, you’d be really happy with it," Richmond coach Damien Hardwick said. "I thought the guys showed really good intent early, set the standard and the way we wanted to play with their contested ball and pressure around the contest. "We walk away really happy with the four points, acknowledge Brisbane probably weren’t at their best today, but we have a really good challenge next week against a good footy club in Melbourne."
Brisbane coach Chris Fagan said that "we have been really, really competitive for the last three weeks but for some reason, the bubble burst today. "I thought we got a lesson from Richmond with contested ball and intensity."
Skipper Trent Cotchin was the standout for Richmond, while Dustin Martin, with six goals, Alex Rance, Reece Conca, and Jack Riewoldt played very well. For the Lions, Mitch Robinson, Stefan Martin, and Allen Christensen, and Cameron Rayner all battled manfully.
Next week Richmond take on Melbourne in an ANZAC day eve night match, while Brisbane is up against rivals Goad Coast in the ‘Q-clash’.
GOALS
Richmond: Martin 6; Castagna, Townsend 3; Lambert 2; Riewoldt, Caddy
Brisbane: Zorko, Rayner
BEST - AFL.COM.AU
Richmond: Cotchin, Lambert, Rance, D. Martin, Conca, Grigg, Riewoldt
Brisbane: Zorko, Rayner, Robinson, S. Martin, Witherden
BEST - THE AGE
Richmond: Cotchin, Martin, Grigg, Rance, Conca, Lambert, Riewoldt
Brisbane: Christensen, Robinson, Rayner
INJURIES
Richmond: Nil
Brisbane: Nil
UMPIRES: Meredith, Harris, Wallace
TELEVISION BROADCAST: Fox Footy
COMMENTATORS: Sandy Roberts, Dwayne Russell, Dermott Brereton, Mark Ricciuto
Richmond | Match Stats | Career | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
# | Player | K | M | H | D | G | B | HO | T | FF | FA | Age | Games | G |
12 | Astbury, David | 13 | 6 | 7 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 27y 47d | 89 | 8 |
7 | Butler, Dan | 5 | 1 | 8 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 21y 315d | 27 | 34 |
22 | Caddy, Josh | 6 | 2 | 10 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 25y 198d | 120 | 104 |
11 | Castagna, Jason | 10 | 5 | 5 | 15 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 21y 276d | 34 | 36 |
30 | Conca, Reece | 12 | 3 | 14 | 26 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 25y 245d | 90 | 21 |
9 | Cotchin, Trent | 11 | 7 | 15 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 28y 7d | 202 | 118 |
10 | Edwards, Shane | 2 | 0 | 13 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 29y 171d | 211 | 142 |
5 | Ellis, Brandon | 9 | 6 | 9 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 24y 254d | 139 | 46 |
34 | Graham, Jack | 10 | 1 | 7 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 20y 48d | 9 | 5 |
6 | Grigg, Shaun | 10 | 4 | 16 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 29y 360d | 196 | 94 |
2 | Grimes, Dylan | 6 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 26y 272d | 108 | 3 |
14 | Houli, Bachar | 8 | 2 | 14 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 29y 337d | 173 | 38 |
23 | Lambert, Kane | 9 | 4 | 15 | 24 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 26y 139d | 56 | 31 |
4 | Martin, Dustin | 14 | 6 | 3 | 17 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 26y 292d | 182 | 199 |
33 | McIntosh, Kamdyn | 11 | 4 | 5 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 24y 11d | 57 | 11 |
25 | Nankervis, Toby | 8 | 3 | 11 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 23y 245d | 40 | 15 |
3 | Prestia, Dion | 12 | 0 | 11 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 25y 184d | 118 | 37 |
18 | Rance, Alex | 5 | 3 | 9 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 28y 187d | 179 | 9 |
8 | Riewoldt, Jack | 11 | 6 | 2 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 29y 165d | 229 | 546 |
15 | Short, Jayden | 14 | 6 | 8 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 22y 80d | 36 | 8 |
21 | Townsend, Jacob | 6 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 24y 298d | 41 | 28 |
1 | Vlastuin, Nick | 9 | 5 | 6 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 23y 360d | 99 | 20 |
Rushed | 7 | |||||||||||||
Totals | 201 | 80 | 196 | 397 | 16 | 14 | 17 | 57 | 27 | 26 | 25y 270d | 2435 | 1553 |
Brisbane | Match Stats | Career | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
# | Player | K | M | H | D | G | B | HO | T | FF | FA | Age | Games | G |
31 | Andrews, Harris | 8 | 7 | 9 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 21y 124d | 62 | 8 |
33 | Bailey, Zac | 2 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 18y 203d | 1 | 0 |
9 | Beams, Dayne | 13 | 4 | 12 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 28y 61d | 150 | 149 |
13 | Berry, Jarrod | 7 | 2 | 10 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 20y 68d | 20 | 10 |
8 | Bewick, Rohan | 12 | 7 | 8 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 28y 186d | 103 | 71 |
23 | Cameron, Charlie | 7 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 23y 283d | 77 | 96 |
3 | Christensen, Allen | 12 | 3 | 11 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 26y 330d | 102 | 87 |
26 | Cutler, Tom | 10 | 3 | 3 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23y 53d | 47 | 21 |
27 | Gardiner, Darcy | 8 | 5 | 12 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 22y 204d | 66 | 4 |
30 | Hipwood, Eric | 6 | 5 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 20y 213d | 34 | 46 |
2 | Hodge, Luke | 13 | 4 | 11 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 33y 303d | 309 | 193 |
12 | Martin, Stefan | 6 | 3 | 18 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 3 | 9 | 1 | 31y 148d | 140 | 39 |
36 | Mathieson, Rhys | 7 | 4 | 8 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 21y 94d | 27 | 16 |
32 | Mayes, Sam | 8 | 4 | 7 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 23y 329d | 99 | 26 |
6 | McCluggage, Hugh | 13 | 2 | 3 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 20y 42d | 22 | 10 |
16 | Rayner, Cam | 13 | 4 | 9 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 18y 175d | 4 | 3 |
18 | Robertson, Nick | 8 | 4 | 7 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 22y 315d | 51 | 8 |
5 | Robinson, Mitch | 15 | 7 | 6 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 28y 311d | 152 | 81 |
28 | Taylor, Lewis | 11 | 5 | 12 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 23y 56d | 89 | 64 |
14 | Walker, Josh | 5 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 25y 153d | 64 | 68 |
29 | Witherden, Alex | 19 | 8 | 8 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19y 216d | 13 | 2 |
15 | Zorko, Dayne | 7 | 4 | 10 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 29y 64d | 126 | 138 |
Totals | 210 | 94 | 176 | 386 | 2 | 5 | 25 | 42 | 26 | 27 | 24y 62d | 1758 | 1140 |