Preview Richmond 2022 preview: Season predictions for the Tigers

[Matthew45]

No way baker is out, kid is a jet

Yes. Baker had arguably the best season last of any player

 

[Dr Tigris]

That was the plan last year and umpires always cruelled us first half each game

Yeah and we cruelled ourselves.

Hopefully this year our plan to deal with the stand rule actually works.

And maybe, just maybe, not having the CEO of Geelong running the umps might help.

 

[dothebowdenshuffle]

On paper Melbourne and Western Bulldogs have the competition covered, but strange things can happen on the day - cue us in 2018 Prelim and Essendon in 1999 Prelim. On balance I think we are around that next group 3rd to 6th. If the quartet of Edwards, Prestia, Lambert and Cotch play a collective 65 games minimum then I think we are top 4. In 2021 they played 55 games, just 40 games in 2020 and 72 games in 2019. if they play 55 or less we probably struggle to make 8. Jack went against the trend and had a very good season. 51 goals from 22 games, no reason he won't be around that mark again. Lynch had the yips last year. His conversion rate has fallen dramatically from 65% in 2019 to just 50% in 2021. Needs to get that back to 60% minimum

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[DoItForCaptBlood]

On paper Melbourne and Western Bulldogs have the competition covered, but strange things can happen on the day - cue us in 2018 Prelim and Essendon in 1999 Prelim. On balance I think we are around that next group 3rd to 6th. If the quartet of Edwards, Prestia, Lambert and Cotch play a collective 65 games minimum then I think we are top 4. In 2021 they played 55 games, just 40 games in 2020 and 72 games in 2019. if they play 55 or less we probably struggle to make 8. Jack went against the trend and had a very good season. 51 goals from 22 games, no reason he won't be around that mark again. Lynch had the yips last year. His conversion rate has fallen dramatically from 65% in 2019 to just 50% in 2021. Needs to get that back to 60% minimum

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Excellent stats. On Lynch, I think his knee injury was more than just a niggle for many games and for a large part of the season he was not only not kicking well, but wasnt hitting the wings and clunking marks like he did in 2019/20. Hopefully he's 100% fit and we see him back to that sort of form.

 

[Tiger_Of_Old]

Excellent stats. On Lynch, I think his knee injury was more than just a niggle for many games and for a large part of the season he was not only not kicking well, but wasnt hitting the wings and clunking marks like he did in 2019/20. Hopefully he's 100% fit and we see him back to that sort of form.

Lynch back firing on all cylinders and Balta fwd=Finals.

 

[Masotiger]

On paper Melbourne and Western Bulldogs have the competition covered, but strange things can happen on the day - cue us in 2018 Prelim and Essendon in 1999 Prelim. On balance I think we are around that next group 3rd to 6th. If the quartet of Edwards, Prestia, Lambert and Cotch play a collective 65 games minimum then I think we are top 4. In 2021 they played 55 games, just 40 games in 2020 and 72 games in 2019. if they play 55 or less we probably struggle to make 8. Jack went against the trend and had a very good season. 51 goals from 22 games, no reason he won't be around that mark again. Lynch had the yips last year. His conversion rate has fallen dramatically from 65% in 2019 to just 50% in 2021. Needs to get that back to 60% minimum

On CPH1941 using BigFooty.com mobile app

Not sure about that.

Imo, Western Bulldogs were lucky to beat Essendon in the Elimination Final. In fact, I reckon if it was a dry day they'd have lost despite it becoming a blow out in the end. We'd be looking at the Dogs in a far different light if that was the case. Port Adelaide were clear favourites to beat the Dogs in the Prelim and put in a shocker. Dogs didn't finish top 4 after the H&A rounds last year. And I reckon they drink their own bathwater too.

Melbourne have to be the team to beat. Let's see how they handle the pressure of being the hunted. Let's see if they have the dream run with injury in 2022 as they had in 2021.

Let's see what impact Covid has on each team in 2022. Players missing games because of isolation requirements, etc, etc. This is the massive unknown.

I can see at least 6 - 8 teams vying for a top 4 finish. Richmond is one of them. I don't fear any of those teams in competition with us for a top 4 finish as long as we have a reasonable run with injury and our coaching staff adapt to this f'kn stupid stand rule. I reckon we have one real good shot left in the locker with this team in season 2022. Shoot straight you bastards!!

 

[beema limapep]

Not sure about that.

Imo, Western Bulldogs were lucky to beat Essendon in the Elimination Final. In fact, I reckon if it was a dry day they'd have lost despite it becoming a blow out in the end. We'd be looking at the Dogs in a far different light if that was the case. Port Adelaide were clear favourites to beat the Dogs in the Prelim and put in a shocker. Dogs didn't finish top 4 after the H&A rounds last year. And I reckon they drink their own bathwater too.

Melbourne have to be the team to beat. Let's see how they handle the pressure of being the hunted. Let's see if they have the dream run with injury in 2022 as they had in 2021.

Let's see what impact Covid has on each team in 2022. Players missing games because of isolation requirements, etc, etc. This is the massive unknown.

I can see at least 6 - 8 teams vying for a top 4 finish. Richmond is one of them. I don't fear any of those teams in competition with us for a top 4 finish as long as we have a reasonable run with injury and our coaching staff adapt to this f'kn stupid stand rule. I reckon we have one real good shot left in the locker with this team in season 2022. Shoot straight you bastards!!

Just to add to this excellent post, if Covid persists with similar uncertainty of players being able to take the field because of Omnicron, the team with the best quality depth of their entire list will reap the spoils, particularly in September.

 

[bc27]

Still believe this team can make top 4 and who knows from there.

Need to find a bit of luck with injuries and win some close ones to build some confidence and momentum early.

Ruck will be key in the games against Melbourne, Bulldogs. If Soldo, Nank or Balta can find some serious form at the right time then it will boost our midfield.

Need Lynch and Jack to be fit and get to as many contests as possible. A lot of question marks over our small forward stocks. Castagna, Aarts, Rioli Jnr, Edwards, Bolton, Clarke and possibly Stack will all be extremely important.

Backline seems solid on paper. Will be interested to see if Tarrant can find the form that made him an all Australian possibility a few years back.

 

[Dr Tigris]

Still believe this team can make top 4 and who knows from there.

Need to find a bit of luck with injuries and win some close ones to build some confidence and momentum early.

Ruck will be key in the games against Melbourne, Bulldogs. If Soldo, Nank or Balta can find some serious form at the right time then it will boost our midfield.

Need Lynch and Jack to be fit and get to as many contests as possible. A lot of question marks over our small forward stocks. Castagna, Aarts, Rioli Jnr, Edwards, Bolton, Clarke and possibly Stack will all be extremely important.

Backline seems solid on paper. Will be interested to see if Tarrant can find the form that made him an all Australian possibility a few years back.

I reckon we can smash the comp, if and only if, we can adapt to the stand rule. We didn't do it in any useful way in 2021. Reckon Dimma and co thought their sh#t didn't stink and they could out smart the comp. Learnt that for once SHocking got it right. The stand rule did cause huge problems for our game style. But looking at finals some version of our style was dominant.

If we can reintroduce pressure and gut running into the game then we still have the list to win it all. If, of course, they stay fit.

Hopefully the team is really hungry and ready to roll. Last year was a kick in the guts and with any luck we'll come out hard. We'll see

 

[Dr Tigris]

And by the way, just a whinge/rant.

How come our old guys are all shot and Geelong's Dad's army are ready to go again, fresh as daisies?

It seems that almost all the commentators and pretty much all (non-tiger) fans see our team as shot. I see a really bad injury year in 2021, that wore down a team that needed rest and a good pre-season. If we get the players fit and rested then why won't they be able to run out the season well?

Add in the younger talent coming through I see a team that might (not will) get all its ducks in a row and smash the season to bits. Geelong like for experience and talent, but with youth and a finals winning game plan.

 

[Karp3_dm]

And by the way, just a whinge/rant.

How come our old guys are all shot and Geelong's Dad's army are ready to go again, fresh as daisies?

It seems that almost all the commentators and pretty much all (non-tiger) fans see our team as shot. I see a really bad injury year in 2021, that wore down a team that needed rest and a good pre-season. If we get the players fit and rested then why won't they be able to run out the season well?

Add in the younger talent coming through I see a team that might (not will) get all its ducks in a row and smash the season to bits. Geelong like for experience and talent, but with youth and a finals winning game plan.

It’s the way we play

 

[richard parker]

Our game plan didn't cut it last year so that's going to be the main watch and see for me. Our list is good but can we jump back ahead of the pack with our style and game plan again? A style that plays to our strengths but also suits the rule changes. Big ask.

 

[Grrr]

Stack on the wing? He wont have the tank.

We would have no idea about his tank in reality. He has never had a full preseason, last year not even a bit of a preseason yet he was running out games by the end of the season no worries. He may not have the tank, but he may, we will see. But he is such a weapon with ball in hand and he covers the ground so easily he could play anywhere. Reckon he will be a star this season.

 

[Ralll]

The lads should be right to go again after a long, much needed break. We still have the same team -Astbury +Tarrant.
Hopefully Dimma doesn't try to reinvent the wheel again. He won 3 flags off the back of "letting the boys play" and not trying to micro manage them too much, like he did through 14'-16'. This and injuries are my biggest worry.

 

[richard parker]

The lads should be right to go again after a long, much needed break. We still have the same team -Astbury +Tarrant.
Hopefully Dimma doesn't try to reinvent the wheel again. He won 3 flags off the back of "letting the boys play" and not trying to micro manage them too much, like he did through 14'-16'. This and injuries are my biggest worry.

This is the party line but the game moves on. Other teams have learned from us and integrated most of what we did in the successful years. I’m not talking about reinventing the wheel. I’m talking about sticking with everything that has worked but adding more strings to the bow. We have some deficiencies that got found out last year. Hopefully we can tweak things and get it right for another crack but after that 2021 post-bye form I’m not expecting miracles.

 

[richard parker]

I think it’s obvious that the dip in form didn’t come from injury/personnel issues. Our strategy and game style were the main problem. Every line across the ground had major issues and the entries inside 50 were laughable.

I’ll say it plainly. We won three flags off a cutting edge, genius game plan. Be thankful and enjoy the memories because it ain’t happening again unless Dimma has some divine inspiration or some top shelf holiday reading material. The old game plan doesn’t work when everyone is doing it (and adding to it).

 

[JR82]

IMO injuries played a massive part, take 4 mids & 4 backs out of any team for an extended period of time & see how they go. Dees had 16 players play all bar 2 games last yr, give us that injury run & we'd be a serious contender for a 4peat this yr. Sure our early form wasn't great but we had players getting injured basically as soon as the season started, besides, our early season form in '19 & '20 wasn't much chop either....

 

[beema limapep]

I reckon we can smash the comp, if and only if, we can adapt to the stand rule. We didn't do it in any useful way in 2021. Reckon Dimma and co thought their sh#t didn't stink and they could out smart the comp. Learnt that for once SHocking got it right. The stand rule did cause huge problems for our game style. But looking at finals some version of our style was dominant.

If we can reintroduce pressure and gut running into the game then we still have the list to win it all. If, of course, they stay fit.

Hopefully the team is really hungry and ready to roll. Last year was a kick in the guts and with any luck we'll come out hard. We'll see

Do we have the cattle to play to the stand rule? The stand rule rewards hitting of targets by foot. Are we good enough, particularly with forward 50 entries?

 

[Tiger_Of_Old]

Do we have the cattle to play to the stand rule? The stand rule rewards hitting of targets by foot. Are we good enough, particularly with forward 50 entries?

Losing Mathew Inness(Fitness guru) too the Swans was also a major blow IMO.

 

[Grrr]

Do we have the cattle to play to the stand rule? The stand rule rewards hitting of targets by foot. Are we good enough, particularly with forward 50 entries?

The 50m rule had nothing to do with Melbourne's finals campaign for example. Win the ball and move it quickly. Nobody other than Salem has an elite kick, certainly not Petracca and Oliver. Bang it long, a group of tall forwards that compete in the air and a smart finisher. A bit like us.

Possession football never stacks up come finals, so in theory in big games as well. Explains Melbourne and also us across 3 premierships.

 

[JAKLAUGHING]

Do we have the cattle to play to the stand rule? The stand rule rewards hitting of targets by foot. Are we good enough, particularly with forward 50 entries?

In that case the scats ought to have been a shoo-in in last years GF...

 

[Jack5]

Until Gil is gone and someone completely refreshes the umpiring department the umps will make sure nothing comes of our season, if nothing gets in the way first - ie. s**t game plan, injuries, age - any of which there is fair chance of anyway.

Having trouble getting excited about the season after watching the umps cruel so many chances for us in the AFLW (not the only reason we have lost but sufficient to make it tough). Anyone like to hazard a guess where we are sitting on the free kick ladder AFLW so far the season?

Last should surprise none of us. We are minus 20 (51 for 71 against), next closest is WCE (52 for 65 against).

It's the way we play - apparently.

 

[Tigerandy63]

The major component that will define our 2022 is how big an impact Ivan Soldo

13

Ivan Soldo

Age

28

Ht

204cm

Wt

110kg

Pos.

Ruck

Career

Season

Last 5

D

8.0

2star

K

3.9

2star

HB

4.1

3star

CL

2.4

4star

HO

24.2

5star

D

7.3

2star

K

3.1

1star

HB

4.1

3star

CL

2.4

4star

HO

23.0

5star

D

6.4

2star

K

3.0

1star

HB

3.4

3star

CL

1.6

4star

HO

21.4

5star

has. He was huge in 2019 & 2020, but thankfully we were able to cover his loss in the 2020 Finals. If we can get 16+ games out of him & Nank, it will go a long way towards our return to genuine contention.

 

[Googstar]

And by the way, just a whinge/rant.

How come our old guys are all shot and Geelong's Dad's army are ready to go again, fresh as daisies?

It seems that almost all the commentators and pretty much all (non-tiger) fans see our team as shot. I see a really bad injury year in 2021, that wore down a team that needed rest and a good pre-season. If we get the players fit and rested then why won't they be able to run out the season well?

Add in the younger talent coming through I see a team that might (not will) get all its ducks in a row and smash the season to bits. Geelong like for experience and talent, but with youth and a finals winning game plan.

Good, let them think that. Makes kicking their butt so much sweeter !

 

[Rioli2Rioli]

Personally i believe our biggest issue was the midfield

Our Defence & Foward line is elite and our Rucks are solid and workman like and rarely get beaten badly
our midfield is where our problems were in 21' with no continuity with injuries and structure
We just lose too many midfield contests and clearances whilst our entries into the foward line need to be revamped

Tegue better be worth it.