Dimma ponders a shorter break

DAMIEN Hardwick could cut short his planned extended break and return to Punt Road in time for Richmond’s first post- Christmas training session.

The Tigers were set to resume on Thursday, but football boss Tim Livingstone has made the call to delay an official return until next Monday, so the full group can train together.

AFL players can train in groups of only 10 from Wednesday until they have a COVID- 19 test and return a negative result before the end of this week.

The triple premiership coach announced after Richmond’s grand final victory over Geelong in late October that he would enjoy a longer offseason and not be back until “maybe February”.

Senior coaches typically take a back seat early in the pre- season, and Tigers physical performance manager Peter Burge is set to be in charge for the initial stages.

Hardwick has transformed Richmond into an AFL juggernaut over the past four seasons, but that’s also made for a taxing period for him.

“It’s been a pretty full on three to four years and we’ve done a hell of a lot of work and had a lot of success along the way, but sometimes you need to step back,” he told 3AW at the time.

“I’m very lucky that I’ve got some terrific assistants. A couple of those guys will move on, but the coaching group and the people I have around me do a large amount of work and the reality is I sit at the top and manage those guys.

“I’m very confident those guys can step up and fill those roles, because it’s been a tough year – professionally and personally.

“I’ll step back for a little while and won’t come back until maybe February … just to give myself a little bit of a break and a bit of breathing room, because I need it at the moment.”

Most AFL clubs are going to resume on Wednesday or Thursday, after first to fourthyear footballers completed a two- week training block from December 7.

The delayed return dates owe to the extraordinary COVID- 19 circumstances that resulted in a later finish to the season for everyone, including an October 24 grand final.

The Tigers will have a newlook coaching structure in 2021, with Justin Leppitsch taking a break and Craig McRae taking up a role at Hawthorn.