Listening to Ben Gale on SEN now, I think I worked out why I don't like Richmond.
They like to have their cake and eat it too.
How pathetic that a club the size of Richmond is bitching about equalization not doing enough to help it build its list. This is in the context of the top up that occurred between 2012 and 2014 which has left them with no depth, funnily enough, and a need to finally hit the draft (only 6 years into Hardwick's tenure).
That whole club is just ******* stupid, totally incapable of the sort of introspection that is required to develop a list properly.
I've been saying it for probably 2 years, It's almost as if the 'brains trust' sat down in 2010 and just conceded defeat to the expansion clubs for the foreseeable future, and they drafted accordingly to justify their stance and look back at it and go 'see, the expansion sides destroyed our drafting'.
Discounting recycled players they've basically found 2 long term players in the past 5 drafts (Vlaustin and Ellis), plus 2 that are sort of around the mark (Bachelor and Conca), the rest either are yet to get a real opportunity or have been dumped already.
People talk about not wanting to go to Melbourne as an 18 year old, I'd not want to go to Richmond as an 18 year old, if you're lucky enough to be the 1-2 18 year olds they actually take you're pushing shit up a steep, steep hill from day one, having to compete with such luminaries as Ricky Petterd and Aaron Edwards.