You just wait, Tigers ready to turn tables

NORTH Melbourne in general, and Jarrad Waite in particular, have caused Richmond no end of problems in recent years.

The Kangaroos have won seven of the past eight AFL matches between the two teams.

The enigmatic Waite has also saved many of his best performances for games against Richmond.

But with a defence led by superstar Alex Rance in rare form, conceding only 81 points a game this year, Tigers coach Damien Hardwick is confident he has the personnel to get the job done tomorrow night at Etihad Stadium.

“We’re really happy with Dave Astbury, Dylan Grimes and Alex Rance and they will take those guys (Waite and Ben Brown) and we back those guys in to beat their quality opponents,” Hardwick said yesterday.

“We’re pretty happy with our backs; we’re reasonably confident they will be able to take care of those guys.”

While Rance has been rated the best defender in the AFL, Hardwick said he would be at home among a group of the all-time best fullbacks.

“I wouldn’t have seen many better one-on-one defenders and then have the ability to use the ball and start counterattack so he’s certainly up there with those guys.” he said.

Hardwick said Rance had come a long way since making his AFL debut in 2009.

“He has worked really hard and has been working on his balance and footwork with (assistant coach) Justin Leppitsch and has taken his game to the next level,” he said.

Fifth-placed Richmond snapped a four-game losing streak with last weekend’s triumph over Essendon at the MCG, while the 13th-ranked Kangaroos have won four of their past five matches

“We are different sides this year, so the run of games really has no bearing on this result,” Hardwick said.

“We’re hoping for a different outcome and we know if we play our best footy we will certainly give ourselves a chance to win.” AAP