- Jul 3, 2001
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Hi Guys
Was meant to do a full AFL preview unfortunately we didn't get enough input, however one was done for Richmond by Weaver. Here it is:
Best Team
B: Graham Gaspar A.Kellaway
HB: Newman Bowden Pettifer
C: Hyde Coughlan Tivendale
HF: Krakouer Richardson Campbell
F: Brown Schulz Rodan
R: Simmonds Johnson Chaffey
I: Stafford Hartigan Deledio Hall
Next Ten
Trent Knobel
Kelvin Moore
Shane Tuck
Shane Morrison
Richard Tambling
Daniel Jackson
Alex Gilmour
Tom Roach
Rory Hilton
Adam Pattison
1. Rory Hilton - Drafted 3 by Brisbane, Richmond paid a high trade price
for him. He has shown no signs of being an elite centreman as projected.
He has struggled to get AFL-fit and has cruised through an 8 year career.
Lacks pace and the stamina to play out full games. One or two courageous
moments don't really make a career. Would have been cut but for a round 15
knee injury which under some AFL loopholes means it is cheaper to keep him
than pay him out.
Role - Probably won't get back into the senior side. HBF.
2. Darren Gaspar - At his best is still an elite man-marker, but modern
football is passing him by. No longer are shut-down defenders prized and
Gaspar's poor kicking and lack or run limits him. A rule change a couple
of years ago to punish guys who fall on the loose ball to force ball-ups
really hurt him. He never was good changing direction or had top-notch
pace and the knee injury has made that worse. Had a terrible 2004 in his
first year back from a big knee injury. With that year out of his system
he should return to his role on the shoulder of the opposition's best
forward.
Role - Number 1 shut-down defender.
3. Brett Deledio - One of the true elite juniors of recent years. Good
size, electric pace, two-footed and good overhead. His ability to play
anywhere and in any role will see him play 15+ games next year as he fills
in the numerous gaps in the Richmond line-up. He might start as a running
defender but longer term will divide his time between the centre and deep
in the forward line. Only two 18 year olds have ever won the Rising Star
award, Deledio has the right set of circumstances to contend to be the 3rd.
Should get 15+ games easily.
Role - Genuine utility who will play everywhere.
4. Andrew Raines - Was a late-round flyer in 2003. Richmond tried to get
allowance to play him in TAC Cup football and thought he would mostly play
in the Coburg reserves. He surprised with a good preseason and added a lot
of weight. He played his way into the Coburg midfield and managed a debut
in round 22. Is a quick, skillful wingman who is probably a year ahead of
where the club thought he would be. Probably still a year or two off
challenging for a regular senior gig.
Role - Outside wingman. Probably needs a year at Coburg.
5. Troy Simmonds - Lost his role as Freo's number 1 ruckman to the
Sandilands / Longmuir combination and was playing as a specialist forward.
Did well as a forward but wanted a return to the number 1 ruck spot and
gets that at Richmond. Wallace has declared he wants a Luke Darcy style
ruckman who contributes around the ground. Almost zero ruck depth at the
Tigers should see him log lots of time in the middle. Look for Simmonds to
have his best season in 2005.
Role - Ruckman with an occasional run up forward.
6. Mark Chaffey - Good teams can afford 150 game veterans as loose men in
defence, it is a bit of a luxury at Richmond. Chaffey has capitalised on
the role but had his worst season last year when his normally adequate
kicking developed the yips. Not really quick or skillful enough to be he
running defender. Wallace has flagged that Chaffey will get a shot at
becoming the team's number 1 tagger. Will want to claim the role or who
will be struggling to be at the club beyond this season. Is strongly
built, courageous and deceptively good overhead for a guy his size.
Role - Will be tried as tagger, but will probably end up in the
back-pocket.
7. Nathan Brown - by anyone else's standards he had a good 2004 but by his
own he can play better. Was still one of the league's top-20 possession
winners and would have won the best and fairest but for a late season
injury. He kicked 18 goals in his first 8 games but only got 8 in his last
12. His declared intention in coming to Richmond was to put his forward
pocket days behind him and become an elite midfielder, and he took a good
step in that direction. He needs a little more stamina and needs to log
more minutes in the middle. Will be interesting to see how Wallace uses
him in 2005.
Role - Rover and forward pocket. Probable best and fairest.
8. Tom Roach - Deceptively quick centreman who is a handy goalkicker with
good kicking skills. Surprised everyone by having a good preseason and
forcing his way into the team early in the season. As he fatigued later in
the season he lost his spot and began to struggle at Coburg. There are a
lot of young midfielders at Richmond and it will be interesting to see
which ones emerge, but Roach has the tools and footy smarts to claim a spot
in a year or two.
Role - Centreman. Still couple of years away from his best.
9. Wayne Campbell - Campbell's body is falling apart and to get anything
from him he will probably have to be used on and off the bench in the way
Riccardi was at the Cats. He still gets the ball, still uses it well, and
there are few players as patient waiting for the right lead before kicking.
All the indications are that he will be used as a forward and impact
player and won't see the 100 minutes a match that he has in the past. Most
probably his last season but if he can get 15-20 matches out of his body he
will be in striking distance of 300.
Role - Impact half-forward. Career winding down but not finished yet.
10. Greg Stafford - It was something of a miracle that Stafford managed to
string together games at all, he is back to his Sydney ways of spending as
much time in the stands as on the grass. Richmond need his physical
presence at the stoppages where he creates room for his rovers by throwing
his body into blocks and tackles. Probably only good for 15 games a season
these days he will be used more and more at full-forward to try and nurse
him along. Probably not mobile enough to prosper under Wallace's gameplan.
Role - Full forward, ruck, bench and treatment room.
11. Joel Bowden - A breath-takingly gifted footballer whose languid style
is easily interpreted as half-hearted cruising. Richmond fans have always
wanted more from him, always wanted him to be one of the top-20 players in
the competition. In 2004 he was dropped from the senior team which seemed
to fire him up a little. The other thing was that he was moved from his
wing role to CHB. Basically copying Chad Cornes' role at Port. He
conceded a few goals but got leather poisoning. He finished 3rd in the
league for average possessions and didn't kick it away as often as he used
to. His reinvention as a CHB was a huge from Richmond's season and they
will surely persist with it.
Role - CHB, unless they put him back on the wing (hope not).
12. Mathew Richardson - Richo slimmed down and worked on his stamina but
then found he couldn't go body to body anymore. They told him to stack on
the weight and plonked him in the goalsquare and asked him to play the
Lynch role. He responded with 65 goals 50 behinds his best return since 99
and his 3rd best effort ever. For the first time he managed a 10 goal
game. Wallace has flagged a desire to return Richo to his wandering
half-forward days which is a bit alarming because he has never quite
mastered it. Richo is 30 now and rarely gets through a full season
uninjured. The goal square role would help him play longer. The problem
is of course that there is no one else to play across half-forward.
Role - Roaming around CHF (prefer him at FF nowdays).
14. Dean Polo - Ungainly looking, awkward kicking action but very
effective. Great determination and just when you think he is spent he
finds a 2nd wind and keeps on keeping on. Long term he will be looked at
as a run-with player and stoppages guy. The Richmond youngsters don't have
a lot of grunt but Polo brings a head over the ball pedigree to the cub.
Has done some good tagging jobs against his peers so might get some senior
games against opponents with some youngsters in their line-ups. Probably 3
years away from regular action.
Role - Ruck-rover and tagger. Needs time but could sneak a few.
15. Kayne Pettifer - In 4 seasons has shown next to nothing after being a
top-10 draft pick. Played almost exclusively as a marking forward he
looked all at sea. His lack of pace and elite skills make him a fairly
ho-hum midfielder by AFL standards. His lack of stamina confines him to
fringe roles. For all that his main weakness has been letting his mistakes
get to him and destroy his confidence. Late in 2004 he was given a run on
the HBF and showed enough form to hold his place for one more season.
Basically Rory Hilton's knee injury saved his career and Pettifer will fill
his role. Will be looking over his shoulder at the kids particularly
because Wallace uses his HBF as extra wingers and Pettifer doesn't have the
pace or stamina for that.
Role - Half-back flank. Borderline with career on the line.
16. Shane Morrison - Was recruited to be a bang and crash physical
presence in the forward line in the Jon Brown style. Played some good
footy early in the season and showed enough to persist with but was
strangely dropped. Struggled to get back into the team despite some
encouraging reserves' form. If he doesn't claim a position this season his
career will be over. Needs to make more contests and hit more of them with
shoulders squared up (as opposed to coming in from 45 degrees). Probably
another whose lack of mobility won't endear him to the new coaching team.
Role - CHF or FF. Have to watch preseason and see if he is in the mix.
18. David Rodan - Electric acceleration but can be run down over distance.
Has a great ability to scoop up the ball off the deck but really needs to
improve his game to hold his place in the team. When he plays midfield his
lack of defensive ability normally sees his opponent best on ground, when
he goes forward he just doesn't kick enough goals. Going into his 4th
season he has only kicked 3 goals in a game twice, and in 60 games has only
got more than 15 touches in 6 of those. This is the year that he has to
some substance to his game.
Role - Forward pocket. Could lose his place to one of the promising kids.
19. Dean Limbach - A tall, light full-forward. Has a good leap, is quick
off the mark and has sticky hands which are good building blocks for a
full-forward. Missed most of the 2004 season and so is a little bit behind
some of the kids in his age group. Will spend most of his time in the gym,
the dinning room and at Coburg.
Role - Full forward. Don't expect him before 2007.
20. Ray Hall - Doesn't quite have the acceleration or match-reading ability
for fullback. Just doesn't hold on to enough marks to be a key forward.
Not tall enough to ruck. He is basically understudy for all the tall roles
in the team without being a contender to claim any of them. Normally that
is good enough for 20 games filling in everywhere. His best footy has been
when he has been closer to midfield where his workrate and determination
make him a 1%er machine. When he gets up and moving he can be a very good
link player as well.
Role - Utility tall. Jack of All Trades, Master of None.
21. Shane Tuck - Wiry wingman who is very good overhead and can steal
forward to snag a goal or two from a pack mark. Played some great games at
Coburg but was frozen out of senior side. The concern seemed to be that he
was a little to prone to go kick chasing and not well versed in some of the
team rules and necessity not to run into other people's zones. He is never
going to get heavier so it is now or never for him. He seems to be best
suited to a run-with role where he doesn't have to concentrate so much and
where he can and can't go.
Role - Run with wingman. Now or never.
22. Danny Meyer - Lightly built, quick and skilled. Good overhead and a
fine set-shot. Will probably cool his heels at Coburg for most of the
season. His gym work is more important than his on-field performances for
the next 2 years. Raines pinched a game late in the season and Meyer may
be given a reward game somewhere along the road, but really is aiming at
2007.
Role - HFF and bench at Coburg. Only cameos this season.
23. Daniel Jackson - Was scheduled to play school footy and Coburg reserves
in 2004 but managed 6 AFL games and looked physically ready for that level.
Played on the HBF but is earmarked to develop into a big midfielder in the
Ricciuto style. Needs to learn a lot and had some bags kicked on him, but
looks an exciting prospect. Is quick, strong and a good size. Very much
the modern footballer. Hard to tell where he will play and how much but he
is one for the future.
Role - Probably HBF again. Could be a run-with midfielder although that
may be in 2006.
24. Mark Coughlan - The elite young midfielder at Richmond who lost 2004 to
injury. Is a clearance machine and crucial to the Tiger's centre square.
Early on he tended to flop onto the loose ball and be pinged for holding,
but that has been addressed and he know has a very good allround game. Not
a speedster but quick enough over the first 5 metres to extract himself
from packs. His absence left Johnson fighting a lone hand and his return
will allow Johnson to prosper as well. Richmond fans will be listening
eagerly for progress reports and hoping that he has an uninterrupted
preseason. In 2003 he was in the top-20 for average disposals.
Role - Centreman (please).
25. Jay Schulz - Probably the only blue-chip bigman recruited by Richmond
since Brad Ottens. Many forwards find playing alongside Richo a struggle
because he commands the entire forward 50 and goes where he pleases.
Schulz has a 6 goal outing in Richo's absence. He is tall, strong, flies
for big marks and is a good kick for goal. In his 3rd year he is on track
to being a very capable key forward. One concern is that Wallace has
flagged that he will be played at CHB which was good for Neitz's
development who is a similar type of player.
Role - Full forward, although he might be apprenticed at CHB.
26. Adam Pattison - Divided his junior career between CHF and the ruck.
Richmond have probably recruited him as a ruckman and there are not too
many teenage ruckmen in the AFL. He will probably play mostly at Coburg
and work on developing physically and improving his kicking. Richmond want
a White / Darcy / Goodes style ruckman who plays like a big midfielder and
gets a lot of touches. It will take Pattison a while to develop that sort
of allround game. He might sneak a few games as a key forward.
Role - Apprentice ruckman. Not this season.
27. Andrew Krakouer - Most fans think of him as a goalsneak, Richmond fans
admire his attack on the ball, his defensive workrate and his 2nd and 3rd
efforts. He combined his 20 goals with 7th in the league for tackles.
Each year he has improved and he will be looked at in his 5th year to
become one of the consistent contributors. Wouldn't surprise to see him
moved to defence to provide some run and class to the backline.
Role - Goalkicking wingman.
28. Kane Johnson - His 24.8 disposals a game was 3rd highest in the league
despite that he is regarded as having had a poor season. There were
certainly a couple of games when his kicking was terrible, but he mixed in
some really good games as well. Was playing a lone-hand for most of the
season without Coughlan and a batch of kids as his support cast. If
anything with Campbell wilting he is not going to see any less work and he
is going to have to battle some pretty stiff odds.
Role - Elite ball-winning ruck-rover and leader.
Was meant to do a full AFL preview unfortunately we didn't get enough input, however one was done for Richmond by Weaver. Here it is:
Best Team
B: Graham Gaspar A.Kellaway
HB: Newman Bowden Pettifer
C: Hyde Coughlan Tivendale
HF: Krakouer Richardson Campbell
F: Brown Schulz Rodan
R: Simmonds Johnson Chaffey
I: Stafford Hartigan Deledio Hall
Next Ten
Trent Knobel
Kelvin Moore
Shane Tuck
Shane Morrison
Richard Tambling
Daniel Jackson
Alex Gilmour
Tom Roach
Rory Hilton
Adam Pattison
1. Rory Hilton - Drafted 3 by Brisbane, Richmond paid a high trade price
for him. He has shown no signs of being an elite centreman as projected.
He has struggled to get AFL-fit and has cruised through an 8 year career.
Lacks pace and the stamina to play out full games. One or two courageous
moments don't really make a career. Would have been cut but for a round 15
knee injury which under some AFL loopholes means it is cheaper to keep him
than pay him out.
Role - Probably won't get back into the senior side. HBF.
2. Darren Gaspar - At his best is still an elite man-marker, but modern
football is passing him by. No longer are shut-down defenders prized and
Gaspar's poor kicking and lack or run limits him. A rule change a couple
of years ago to punish guys who fall on the loose ball to force ball-ups
really hurt him. He never was good changing direction or had top-notch
pace and the knee injury has made that worse. Had a terrible 2004 in his
first year back from a big knee injury. With that year out of his system
he should return to his role on the shoulder of the opposition's best
forward.
Role - Number 1 shut-down defender.
3. Brett Deledio - One of the true elite juniors of recent years. Good
size, electric pace, two-footed and good overhead. His ability to play
anywhere and in any role will see him play 15+ games next year as he fills
in the numerous gaps in the Richmond line-up. He might start as a running
defender but longer term will divide his time between the centre and deep
in the forward line. Only two 18 year olds have ever won the Rising Star
award, Deledio has the right set of circumstances to contend to be the 3rd.
Should get 15+ games easily.
Role - Genuine utility who will play everywhere.
4. Andrew Raines - Was a late-round flyer in 2003. Richmond tried to get
allowance to play him in TAC Cup football and thought he would mostly play
in the Coburg reserves. He surprised with a good preseason and added a lot
of weight. He played his way into the Coburg midfield and managed a debut
in round 22. Is a quick, skillful wingman who is probably a year ahead of
where the club thought he would be. Probably still a year or two off
challenging for a regular senior gig.
Role - Outside wingman. Probably needs a year at Coburg.
5. Troy Simmonds - Lost his role as Freo's number 1 ruckman to the
Sandilands / Longmuir combination and was playing as a specialist forward.
Did well as a forward but wanted a return to the number 1 ruck spot and
gets that at Richmond. Wallace has declared he wants a Luke Darcy style
ruckman who contributes around the ground. Almost zero ruck depth at the
Tigers should see him log lots of time in the middle. Look for Simmonds to
have his best season in 2005.
Role - Ruckman with an occasional run up forward.
6. Mark Chaffey - Good teams can afford 150 game veterans as loose men in
defence, it is a bit of a luxury at Richmond. Chaffey has capitalised on
the role but had his worst season last year when his normally adequate
kicking developed the yips. Not really quick or skillful enough to be he
running defender. Wallace has flagged that Chaffey will get a shot at
becoming the team's number 1 tagger. Will want to claim the role or who
will be struggling to be at the club beyond this season. Is strongly
built, courageous and deceptively good overhead for a guy his size.
Role - Will be tried as tagger, but will probably end up in the
back-pocket.
7. Nathan Brown - by anyone else's standards he had a good 2004 but by his
own he can play better. Was still one of the league's top-20 possession
winners and would have won the best and fairest but for a late season
injury. He kicked 18 goals in his first 8 games but only got 8 in his last
12. His declared intention in coming to Richmond was to put his forward
pocket days behind him and become an elite midfielder, and he took a good
step in that direction. He needs a little more stamina and needs to log
more minutes in the middle. Will be interesting to see how Wallace uses
him in 2005.
Role - Rover and forward pocket. Probable best and fairest.
8. Tom Roach - Deceptively quick centreman who is a handy goalkicker with
good kicking skills. Surprised everyone by having a good preseason and
forcing his way into the team early in the season. As he fatigued later in
the season he lost his spot and began to struggle at Coburg. There are a
lot of young midfielders at Richmond and it will be interesting to see
which ones emerge, but Roach has the tools and footy smarts to claim a spot
in a year or two.
Role - Centreman. Still couple of years away from his best.
9. Wayne Campbell - Campbell's body is falling apart and to get anything
from him he will probably have to be used on and off the bench in the way
Riccardi was at the Cats. He still gets the ball, still uses it well, and
there are few players as patient waiting for the right lead before kicking.
All the indications are that he will be used as a forward and impact
player and won't see the 100 minutes a match that he has in the past. Most
probably his last season but if he can get 15-20 matches out of his body he
will be in striking distance of 300.
Role - Impact half-forward. Career winding down but not finished yet.
10. Greg Stafford - It was something of a miracle that Stafford managed to
string together games at all, he is back to his Sydney ways of spending as
much time in the stands as on the grass. Richmond need his physical
presence at the stoppages where he creates room for his rovers by throwing
his body into blocks and tackles. Probably only good for 15 games a season
these days he will be used more and more at full-forward to try and nurse
him along. Probably not mobile enough to prosper under Wallace's gameplan.
Role - Full forward, ruck, bench and treatment room.
11. Joel Bowden - A breath-takingly gifted footballer whose languid style
is easily interpreted as half-hearted cruising. Richmond fans have always
wanted more from him, always wanted him to be one of the top-20 players in
the competition. In 2004 he was dropped from the senior team which seemed
to fire him up a little. The other thing was that he was moved from his
wing role to CHB. Basically copying Chad Cornes' role at Port. He
conceded a few goals but got leather poisoning. He finished 3rd in the
league for average possessions and didn't kick it away as often as he used
to. His reinvention as a CHB was a huge from Richmond's season and they
will surely persist with it.
Role - CHB, unless they put him back on the wing (hope not).
12. Mathew Richardson - Richo slimmed down and worked on his stamina but
then found he couldn't go body to body anymore. They told him to stack on
the weight and plonked him in the goalsquare and asked him to play the
Lynch role. He responded with 65 goals 50 behinds his best return since 99
and his 3rd best effort ever. For the first time he managed a 10 goal
game. Wallace has flagged a desire to return Richo to his wandering
half-forward days which is a bit alarming because he has never quite
mastered it. Richo is 30 now and rarely gets through a full season
uninjured. The goal square role would help him play longer. The problem
is of course that there is no one else to play across half-forward.
Role - Roaming around CHF (prefer him at FF nowdays).
14. Dean Polo - Ungainly looking, awkward kicking action but very
effective. Great determination and just when you think he is spent he
finds a 2nd wind and keeps on keeping on. Long term he will be looked at
as a run-with player and stoppages guy. The Richmond youngsters don't have
a lot of grunt but Polo brings a head over the ball pedigree to the cub.
Has done some good tagging jobs against his peers so might get some senior
games against opponents with some youngsters in their line-ups. Probably 3
years away from regular action.
Role - Ruck-rover and tagger. Needs time but could sneak a few.
15. Kayne Pettifer - In 4 seasons has shown next to nothing after being a
top-10 draft pick. Played almost exclusively as a marking forward he
looked all at sea. His lack of pace and elite skills make him a fairly
ho-hum midfielder by AFL standards. His lack of stamina confines him to
fringe roles. For all that his main weakness has been letting his mistakes
get to him and destroy his confidence. Late in 2004 he was given a run on
the HBF and showed enough form to hold his place for one more season.
Basically Rory Hilton's knee injury saved his career and Pettifer will fill
his role. Will be looking over his shoulder at the kids particularly
because Wallace uses his HBF as extra wingers and Pettifer doesn't have the
pace or stamina for that.
Role - Half-back flank. Borderline with career on the line.
16. Shane Morrison - Was recruited to be a bang and crash physical
presence in the forward line in the Jon Brown style. Played some good
footy early in the season and showed enough to persist with but was
strangely dropped. Struggled to get back into the team despite some
encouraging reserves' form. If he doesn't claim a position this season his
career will be over. Needs to make more contests and hit more of them with
shoulders squared up (as opposed to coming in from 45 degrees). Probably
another whose lack of mobility won't endear him to the new coaching team.
Role - CHF or FF. Have to watch preseason and see if he is in the mix.
18. David Rodan - Electric acceleration but can be run down over distance.
Has a great ability to scoop up the ball off the deck but really needs to
improve his game to hold his place in the team. When he plays midfield his
lack of defensive ability normally sees his opponent best on ground, when
he goes forward he just doesn't kick enough goals. Going into his 4th
season he has only kicked 3 goals in a game twice, and in 60 games has only
got more than 15 touches in 6 of those. This is the year that he has to
some substance to his game.
Role - Forward pocket. Could lose his place to one of the promising kids.
19. Dean Limbach - A tall, light full-forward. Has a good leap, is quick
off the mark and has sticky hands which are good building blocks for a
full-forward. Missed most of the 2004 season and so is a little bit behind
some of the kids in his age group. Will spend most of his time in the gym,
the dinning room and at Coburg.
Role - Full forward. Don't expect him before 2007.
20. Ray Hall - Doesn't quite have the acceleration or match-reading ability
for fullback. Just doesn't hold on to enough marks to be a key forward.
Not tall enough to ruck. He is basically understudy for all the tall roles
in the team without being a contender to claim any of them. Normally that
is good enough for 20 games filling in everywhere. His best footy has been
when he has been closer to midfield where his workrate and determination
make him a 1%er machine. When he gets up and moving he can be a very good
link player as well.
Role - Utility tall. Jack of All Trades, Master of None.
21. Shane Tuck - Wiry wingman who is very good overhead and can steal
forward to snag a goal or two from a pack mark. Played some great games at
Coburg but was frozen out of senior side. The concern seemed to be that he
was a little to prone to go kick chasing and not well versed in some of the
team rules and necessity not to run into other people's zones. He is never
going to get heavier so it is now or never for him. He seems to be best
suited to a run-with role where he doesn't have to concentrate so much and
where he can and can't go.
Role - Run with wingman. Now or never.
22. Danny Meyer - Lightly built, quick and skilled. Good overhead and a
fine set-shot. Will probably cool his heels at Coburg for most of the
season. His gym work is more important than his on-field performances for
the next 2 years. Raines pinched a game late in the season and Meyer may
be given a reward game somewhere along the road, but really is aiming at
2007.
Role - HFF and bench at Coburg. Only cameos this season.
23. Daniel Jackson - Was scheduled to play school footy and Coburg reserves
in 2004 but managed 6 AFL games and looked physically ready for that level.
Played on the HBF but is earmarked to develop into a big midfielder in the
Ricciuto style. Needs to learn a lot and had some bags kicked on him, but
looks an exciting prospect. Is quick, strong and a good size. Very much
the modern footballer. Hard to tell where he will play and how much but he
is one for the future.
Role - Probably HBF again. Could be a run-with midfielder although that
may be in 2006.
24. Mark Coughlan - The elite young midfielder at Richmond who lost 2004 to
injury. Is a clearance machine and crucial to the Tiger's centre square.
Early on he tended to flop onto the loose ball and be pinged for holding,
but that has been addressed and he know has a very good allround game. Not
a speedster but quick enough over the first 5 metres to extract himself
from packs. His absence left Johnson fighting a lone hand and his return
will allow Johnson to prosper as well. Richmond fans will be listening
eagerly for progress reports and hoping that he has an uninterrupted
preseason. In 2003 he was in the top-20 for average disposals.
Role - Centreman (please).
25. Jay Schulz - Probably the only blue-chip bigman recruited by Richmond
since Brad Ottens. Many forwards find playing alongside Richo a struggle
because he commands the entire forward 50 and goes where he pleases.
Schulz has a 6 goal outing in Richo's absence. He is tall, strong, flies
for big marks and is a good kick for goal. In his 3rd year he is on track
to being a very capable key forward. One concern is that Wallace has
flagged that he will be played at CHB which was good for Neitz's
development who is a similar type of player.
Role - Full forward, although he might be apprenticed at CHB.
26. Adam Pattison - Divided his junior career between CHF and the ruck.
Richmond have probably recruited him as a ruckman and there are not too
many teenage ruckmen in the AFL. He will probably play mostly at Coburg
and work on developing physically and improving his kicking. Richmond want
a White / Darcy / Goodes style ruckman who plays like a big midfielder and
gets a lot of touches. It will take Pattison a while to develop that sort
of allround game. He might sneak a few games as a key forward.
Role - Apprentice ruckman. Not this season.
27. Andrew Krakouer - Most fans think of him as a goalsneak, Richmond fans
admire his attack on the ball, his defensive workrate and his 2nd and 3rd
efforts. He combined his 20 goals with 7th in the league for tackles.
Each year he has improved and he will be looked at in his 5th year to
become one of the consistent contributors. Wouldn't surprise to see him
moved to defence to provide some run and class to the backline.
Role - Goalkicking wingman.
28. Kane Johnson - His 24.8 disposals a game was 3rd highest in the league
despite that he is regarded as having had a poor season. There were
certainly a couple of games when his kicking was terrible, but he mixed in
some really good games as well. Was playing a lone-hand for most of the
season without Coughlan and a batch of kids as his support cast. If
anything with Campbell wilting he is not going to see any less work and he
is going to have to battle some pretty stiff odds.
Role - Elite ball-winning ruck-rover and leader.
