Dusty still hungry for third title

RICHMOND superstar Dustin Martin is adamant a third AFL premiership would mean just as much as the first two — even if it comes during the coronavirus-affected 2020 season.

The Tigers’ flag defence was put on hold in March after just one round because of the COVID-19 lockdown.

Richmond has not won back-to-back premierships since 1974 and is aiming to hold the trophy aloft for the third time in four seasons to cement its spot as one of the great modern-day sides.

Even with the fixture-list slashed to 17 rounds, quarters shortened and fans indefinitely barred from attending games, Martin believes winning a grand final would still be a significant achievement.

“It’s certainly going to be different but it will certainly mean just as much,” the twotime Norm Smith medallist said.

“And who knows, we might be playing in front of people in a few months. We’re all competitive beasts.

“Every time we go out onto the oval we all want to win, whether there’s a crowd or not.

“That goes right across the league.” While relishing a return to Punt Road for training today, the 28-year-old made the most of his more than six weeks away from football.

“I really enjoyed the downtime, to be honest. Life gets pretty busy a lot of the time, so it was good to just slow down and simplify life a little bit,” Martin said.

“I made sure I got up really early every morning, banged out all my training. That usually takes up most of the morning.”

Boasting an experienced group, many of whom have featured in six of the last seven finals series, Richmond’s players knew the high standards expected of them from coach Damien Hardwick while in lockdown.

“Our older guys are good at checking in on the younger guys,” Martin said.

“It wasn’t over the top, just every now and then to ensure everyone’s fine.

“[Hardwick] has great trust in the group, which we’ve built over the years, so all the boys attacked their training really well.”