Training Pre Season ‘25

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Mykelti Lefau, Josh Gibcus, Tylar Young, Taj Hotton and Judson Clarke off to Samoa​

Richmond were decimated by injury in 2024, particularly knee complaints. Now, Richmond’s “ACL quintet” are taking the next step in their road back to the top level.
Lauren Wood
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@LaurenHeraldSun









Richmond’s “ACL quintet” will jet off to Samoa on Saturday with Tigers forward Mykelti Lefau to connect with the sites of his family roots for the very first time.
Lefau, Josh Gibcus, Tylar Young, Taj Hotton and Judson Clarke — who is the closest of the five who suffered the knee injury in 2024 to returning to play — will travel to the Pacific country, with an eye to both discovering more about Lefau’s Samoan heritage and further developing football in the Polynesian islands.
The 26-year-old was born in New Zealand with his father from Samoa, and will travel to the village his grandparents call home for the very first time on the five-day trip — his first to the island nation.
Mykelti Lefau was a bright spot before going down with injury. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Mykelti Lefau was a bright spot before going down with injury. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images
“Mykelti is very proud of his Samoan heritage,” Tigers chief executive Shane Dunne said.
“The traditional celebration his family and friends put on for him in our changerooms at the MCG before his debut was a great example of how he carries his heritage and what it means to him.
“For him to now be able to return to his family’s village while wearing the Richmond logo will be a proud moment for him, but also for our club.”
Lefau’s family members delivered a haka to the Tiger upon his debut game in 2024 which he described at the time as “pretty special”.
His grandmother on his father’s side is from Nofoali’i, a village on the Samoan island of Upolu, and his grandfather Falelatai on the same island.
“I’d never really had an opportunity to show my culture before, and doing it in the AFL … I had no hesitation to do it,” Lefau said last year.
“I think it’s very important to see a future with Pacific islanders playing AFL. It’s sort of an untapped area of talent.
“That’s my dream — to make sure we have young kids from islands to have an opportunity to play a sport that they’ve never even heard of.”
The Tigers were ravaged by knee injuries in 2024. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

The Tigers were ravaged by knee injuries in 2024. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images
Lefau suffered his ACL injury in May and with his four fellow injured Tigers is expected to be given a full 12 months to recover.
Clarke, 21, has progressed slightly ahead of the five and took part in most match drills at Punt Road Oval on Wednesday morning.
The upcoming Pacific trip will also include visits to sporting organisations and the opportunity for locals interested in learning more about AFL coaching.
“AFL is for everyone,” Dunne said.
“And Richmond embodies that. It’s powerful that our players can engage with the Samoan community actively — and who knows, they might inspire some local talent to consider the sport as a potential option.”

I hope he can speak the language. Going to be an awkward as **** trip if he can’t.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Mykelti Lefau, Josh Gibcus, Tylar Young, Taj Hotton and Judson Clarke off to Samoa​

Richmond were decimated by injury in 2024, particularly knee complaints. Now, Richmond’s “ACL quintet” are taking the next step in their road back to the top level.
Lauren Wood
follow
@LaurenHeraldSun








Richmond’s “ACL quintet” will jet off to Samoa on Saturday with Tigers forward Mykelti Lefau to connect with the sites of his family roots for the very first time.
Lefau, Josh Gibcus, Tylar Young, Taj Hotton and Judson Clarke — who is the closest of the five who suffered the knee injury in 2024 to returning to play — will travel to the Pacific country, with an eye to both discovering more about Lefau’s Samoan heritage and further developing football in the Polynesian islands.
The 26-year-old was born in New Zealand with his father from Samoa, and will travel to the village his grandparents call home for the very first time on the five-day trip — his first to the island nation.
Mykelti Lefau was a bright spot before going down with injury. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Mykelti Lefau was a bright spot before going down with injury. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images
“Mykelti is very proud of his Samoan heritage,” Tigers chief executive Shane Dunne said.
“The traditional celebration his family and friends put on for him in our changerooms at the MCG before his debut was a great example of how he carries his heritage and what it means to him.
“For him to now be able to return to his family’s village while wearing the Richmond logo will be a proud moment for him, but also for our club.”
Lefau’s family members delivered a haka to the Tiger upon his debut game in 2024 which he described at the time as “pretty special”.
His grandmother on his father’s side is from Nofoali’i, a village on the Samoan island of Upolu, and his grandfather Falelatai on the same island.
“I’d never really had an opportunity to show my culture before, and doing it in the AFL … I had no hesitation to do it,” Lefau said last year.
“I think it’s very important to see a future with Pacific islanders playing AFL. It’s sort of an untapped area of talent.
“That’s my dream — to make sure we have young kids from islands to have an opportunity to play a sport that they’ve never even heard of.”
The Tigers were ravaged by knee injuries in 2024. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

The Tigers were ravaged by knee injuries in 2024. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images
Lefau suffered his ACL injury in May and with his four fellow injured Tigers is expected to be given a full 12 months to recover.
Clarke, 21, has progressed slightly ahead of the five and took part in most match drills at Punt Road Oval on Wednesday morning.
The upcoming Pacific trip will also include visits to sporting organisations and the opportunity for locals interested in learning more about AFL coaching.
“AFL is for everyone,” Dunne said.
“And Richmond embodies that. It’s powerful that our players can engage with the Samoan community actively — and who knows, they might inspire some local talent to consider the sport as a potential option.”
The louie meehan 5
 

Richmond track watch: Jacob Koschitzke continues in defensive role​

An ex-Hawk continues to train in defence as the Tigers look to cover two key pillars of the back six. Plus a number of draftees are in the frame for game time next month in the lead up to round 1.
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Jacob Koschitzke is looming as the defensive cover Richmond sorely requires in the wake of key absences that will stretch into the first portion of the season.
The positional switch-up from forward to defence has been in the works since before Christmas but the experiment could pay off early for the Tigers, with Koschitzke in full defensive mode at Punt Road on Wednesday morning as the team desperately looks to a key pillar in the absence of Noah Balta (suspended) and Josh Gibcus as he continues his recovery from an ACL injury.
Gibcus was on Tuesday ruled out of at least the early rounds of the season, while Balta will miss at least the first four games of the season after he was charged by police with assault earlier this month.
Koschitzke has played 62 games — including 48 for Hawthorn before joining Richmond at the end of 2023 — and kicked 66 goals but was originally drafted as a fullback.
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Jacob Koschitzke has been training as a defender. Picture: Getty Images

Jacob Koschitzke has been training as a defender. Picture: Getty Images
As many as six untried Tigers could make the trip to Perth in a fortnight where the team will face West Coast on February 17.
Draftee Luke Trainor could line up alongside Koschitzke in defence, while Thomas Sims — who was taken at pick 28 — featured at full-forward in a number of drills at Punt Road on Wednesday morning, working in cohesion with premiership forward Tom Lynch who is at full fitness.
Tom Lynch. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Tom Lynch. Picture: Jake Nowakowski
The Tigers were put through their paces. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

The Tigers were put through their paces. Picture: Jake Nowakowski
Sam Lalor. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Sam Lalor. Picture: Jake Nowakowski
Big-bodied midfielder Sam Lalor remains firmly in the frame to play in Round 1 but completed some work indoors due to management with heavy match simulation sessions to bookend the week on Monday and Wednesday, while ballwinning counterpart Dion Prestia also completed only 45 minutes of the two-hour session on the ground before heading inside.
Fellow midfielder Josh Smillie suffered a minor hamstring injury earlier this week but could still face the Eagles, while initial fears that Jasper Alger had suffered a knee injury this week were allayed when it was discovered to be a hyperextension.
Forwards Jonty Faull and Harry Armstrong are also considered chances to feature in the coming weeks.
Former Tigers Jack Graham and Liam Baker are both now Eagles, though the latter was forced from the training track on Wednesday after appearing to injure his ankle in an awkward landing, leaving questions as to whether he will take on his former side.
Ruck Samson Ryan played as a key forward throughout Wednesday morning’s session, while Kamdyn McIntosh wore a “no contact” hat for the entire session.

Could Koschitzke experience a Rory-Lobb-esque career revivification with his move to the backline?
 

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Mykelti Lefau, Josh Gibcus, Tylar Young, Taj Hotton and Judson Clarke off to Samoa​

Richmond were decimated by injury in 2024, particularly knee complaints. Now, Richmond’s “ACL quintet” are taking the next step in their road back to the top level.
Lauren Wood
follow

@LaurenHeraldSun









Richmond’s “ACL quintet” will jet off to Samoa on Saturday with Tigers forward Mykelti Lefau to connect with the sites of his family roots for the very first time.
Lefau, Josh Gibcus, Tylar Young, Taj Hotton and Judson Clarke — who is the closest of the five who suffered the knee injury in 2024 to returning to play — will travel to the Pacific country, with an eye to both discovering more about Lefau’s Samoan heritage and further developing football in the Polynesian islands.
The 26-year-old was born in New Zealand with his father from Samoa, and will travel to the village his grandparents call home for the very first time on the five-day trip — his first to the island nation.
Mykelti Lefau was a bright spot before going down with injury. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Mykelti Lefau was a bright spot before going down with injury. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images
“Mykelti is very proud of his Samoan heritage,” Tigers chief executive Shane Dunne said.
“The traditional celebration his family and friends put on for him in our changerooms at the MCG before his debut was a great example of how he carries his heritage and what it means to him.
“For him to now be able to return to his family’s village while wearing the Richmond logo will be a proud moment for him, but also for our club.”
Lefau’s family members delivered a haka to the Tiger upon his debut game in 2024 which he described at the time as “pretty special”.
His grandmother on his father’s side is from Nofoali’i, a village on the Samoan island of Upolu, and his grandfather Falelatai on the same island.
“I’d never really had an opportunity to show my culture before, and doing it in the AFL … I had no hesitation to do it,” Lefau said last year.
“I think it’s very important to see a future with Pacific islanders playing AFL. It’s sort of an untapped area of talent.
“That’s my dream — to make sure we have young kids from islands to have an opportunity to play a sport that they’ve never even heard of.”
The Tigers were ravaged by knee injuries in 2024. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

The Tigers were ravaged by knee injuries in 2024. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images
Lefau suffered his ACL injury in May and with his four fellow injured Tigers is expected to be given a full 12 months to recover.
Clarke, 21, has progressed slightly ahead of the five and took part in most match drills at Punt Road Oval on Wednesday morning.
The upcoming Pacific trip will also include visits to sporting organisations and the opportunity for locals interested in learning more about AFL coaching.
“AFL is for everyone,” Dunne said.
“And Richmond embodies that. It’s powerful that our players can engage with the Samoan community actively — and who knows, they might inspire some local talent to consider the sport as a potential option.”
Great idea for the boys I reckon.
 
Nothing in that package that suggests he’s AFL level.
You realise that was footage from under 17s yeah?

I swear people just expect to see 2017 Dusty version clones in every video they see
 
Could Koschitzke experience a Rory-Lobb-esque career revivification with his move to the backline?
Funnier things have happened.
I believe he was defender in his junior years.
 

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Training Pre Season ‘25


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