Richo Admits Players Have Mental Issues

[_RT_]

MATTHEW Richardson has fronted the media at Punt Rd this morning, conceding that the team has mental issues. The veteran Tiger was at a loss to explain why the club was suffering dramatic fade outs within matches.

"If you sat back and looked at it would be a fair assessment to say there must be some mental obstacles there," Richardson said

Richardson pointed to the fact the Tigers could match it for a half with the Bulldogs, three quarters with Geelong and outscore Melbourne for three quarters yet somehow walk away without any points.

Richardson rallied around Tigers coach Terry Wallace saying he expected him to coach out the year.

He said there was no point for the players to mope around, feeling doom and gloom with 18 weeks to go in the season.

In brighter news, Richardson revealed Ben Cousins is on track to return this week. The controversial recruit completed a full training session today and it looks like it will just be a question of whether he comes straight back into the senior side or plays for Coburg in the VFL

Interesting reading that. Especially when it is coming from someone like Richo who has often been the butt of jokes when it comes to mental snaps and brain fades.

 

[sante]

Well, way to state the obvious.

****ing fix the problem!!!

 

[thecotch]

No shit richo!!! And all this time we thought you were all just having off days!!!

It doesn't help when you continuously miss sodas from 30mts out directly in front and deflate the entire team. Sorry, I know you're a champ but enough is enough.

 

[Barnzy]

"Richardson pointed to the fact the Tigers could match it for a half with the Bulldogs, three quarters with Geelong and outscore Melbourne for three quarters yet somehow walk away without any points"

For crying out loud. Typical response from players and the coach yet they somehow forget to mention the main problem is they can't hit a target with our without pressure not fadeouts. You can only fadeout if you have a chance of winning in the first place. Outscoring Melbourne for three quarters, geez thats hard... well done.

 

[Bruce Monteath]

Listening to him now on SEN. Geez he has developed into a polished and considered speaker. Drops a few cliches and yes, states a bit of the obvious but it makes me wonder if things would have been different if we'd bitten the bullet and made him captain.

 

[Powerstufff]

Late in 2003 after Jason Torney went from Richmond to the Crows there was an interview where he talked about the subconcious mindset that develops when a team is expected to lose more often than not. It was in the context of a then more competitive Richmond often losing winnable games. Now he found himself at (*&^%) Adelaide, a team which almost never dies in a game until you hammer 2 wooden stakes into its heart.
The sudden contrast in mindset/culture surprised him. He thought he and his fellow players at Richmond had been +ve, and had had self-belief. Suddenly he could see why when he was at Richmond they could put away the weaker teams but why they struggled to win close ones. And rarely, if ever, knocked off the big teams of a particular year.
I wish I'd kept the story quote because it wasn't contrived and you got the genuine feeling of someone astonished by what he was only now seeing clearly. As I recall he said something like: "You don't consciously think you will always lose but in a close one when you pull 2 goals ahead late in the game you think 'Great! Now when they kick 3 we won't have lost by so much.'."

 

[deliberate!!]

Interesting reading that. Especially when it is coming from someone like Richo who has often been the butt of jokes when it comes to mental snaps and brain fades.

Exactly RT, is there a bigger **** up in front of goal than Richo?
Oh yeh, blah, blah, blah...."Richo loves Richmond" "Richo bleeds Richmond" "Richo's heart is soooo big".
Other teams love him, cause it's like watching a sad train wreck.
Even the umps feel sympathy for him. (Re: Eddie the Eagle)

The guy could have been the greatest player ever.
Instead, he's one of the all time great contested mark and the biggest yippster ever! Marking OK....Skills, poor.
8 million shots at goal, 800 goals. Yipee!!

One week Newy, next Richo...who are we going to wheel out next....?

Anyone hear Grant Thomas's comment on the radio over the weekend about so called Champion players who can actually hurt clubs in the long run? Great point. Our skill level will ALWAYS have it's ceiling at its greatest currently playing player.....and that is Richo!
(And before someone misses the point and tries to attack Thomas, for once, deal with the concept, analyze it or destroy it. Beating down this messenger, means you have no answer to the theory posed. Discredit the theory, not the messenger.)

 

[Roachy8]

^^^^^^^
Thanks Powerstufff... interesting.

Regarding Richo's comments today, well this comes as no surprise to anyone I reckon.

Tigers have been mentally fragile for years and years... not helped by poor direction from Club Management, Board & the coaches.

Going back 20 odd years before we became real crap, didn't we have the well known West Indian sports psychologist Rudi someone???

Maybe we should find him & bring him back to Punt Road to set up his leather couch again...

 

[Spagman]

At least one of the players has picked up something from TW.. spinning the media.

 

[Croat tiger]

^^^^^^^
Thanks Powerstufff... interesting.

Regarding Richo's comments today, well this comes as no surprise to anyone I reckon.

Tigers have been mentally fragile for years and years... not helped by poor direction from Club Management, Board & the coaches.

Going back 20 odd years before we became real crap, didn't we have the well known West Indian sports psychologist Rudi someone???

Maybe we should find him & bring him back to Punt Road to set up his leather couch again...

Rudi webster probably dead or where I should be in a nursing home..

 

[dothebowdenshuffle]

Late in 2003 after Jason Torney went from Richmond to the Crows there was an interview where he talked about the subconcious mindset that develops when a team is expected to lose more often than not. It was in the context of a then more competitive Richmond often losing winnable games. Now he found himself at (*&^%) Adelaide, a team which almost never dies in a game until you hammer 2 wooden stakes into its heart.
The sudden contrast in mindset/culture surprised him. He thought he and his fellow players at Richmond had been +ve, and had had self-belief. Suddenly he could see why when he was at Richmond they could put away the weaker teams but why they struggled to win close ones. And rarely, if ever, knocked off the big teams of a particular year.
I wish I'd kept the story quote because it wasn't contrived and you got the genuine feeling of someone astonished by what he was only now seeing clearly. As I recall he said something like: "You don't consciously think you will always lose but in a close one when you pull 2 goals ahead late in the game you think 'Great! Now when they kick 3 we won't have lost by so much.'."

Thanks Powerstuff - great insight> I would also suggest that part of that mindset may be looking for the finish line early - "can we hold on?" as opposed to going for the kill. Witness games last year v Essendon (the narrow win) and Western Bulldogs (the draw) or even the loss to Carlton when in front at 3/4 time.

 

[TWILL]

Maybe you just recruited a bunch of ****tas ...... who knows what goes down at punt road ...... they won't let the cameras capture anything in that place

 

[Powerstufff]

.... I would also suggest that part of that mindset may be looking for the finish line early - "can we hold on?" as opposed to going for the kill.....

That is exactly what Torney was trying to convey. He realised the Adelaide team he found himself in then lost games, but when he had been at Richmond they simply failed to win them. I think the line you cross is when players leave you without much of a reputation but then turn out to be highly productive elsewhere. Freo is the absolute benchmark there but Richmond are slipping back to that point now.