Tigers staying on the prowl
RICHMOND say they remain the hunters rather than hunted as they look to open their AFL premiership defence with a win over Carlton tonight at the MCG.
While rivals will be after their mantle as the competition’s best, Tigers coach Damien Hardwick says his team will continue to play the game on their own terms.
“Defensively, we’re very strong, we hunt the opposition, we stalk the opposition and we hunt and that’s the way we play,” Hardwick said yesterday.
“Other clubs will come at us but the reality is we control how we want to be seen.”
Carlton young gun Patrick Phipps has a target on his back after his starring performance during the Blues’ pre- season.
The star onballer, having missed half of 2017 with a broken leg, has taken his game to a new level, rotating forward in the Blues’ attack which has the Tigers on high alert.
“They’ve got a real weapon with Patrick and his ability to push a little bit forward as well,” Hardwick said.
“We’ve got some great defenders who will be able to manage him as best they can but a player like Cripps, you always put some work into.
“They’ve got a really solid midfield that is exciting and developing so it’s going to be a big challenge for us.”
Richmond will be without grand final heroes Bachar Houli ( calf) and Dion Prestia ( hamstring), after losing their race against time to prove their fitness.
Hardwick said Houli was close but felt the frantic pace of a Round 1 match might cause further damage. He expected both to be available for their grand final rematch against Adelaide in Round 2.
“Bachar was close and we could have rolled the dice and played him but round one games are so quick and fast and his recovery would then ( have) been hindered and he wouldn’t have got enough training in,” Hardwick said.
“We thought we’d go the conservative approach and train him up for a couple of weeks.”