Grockadoc
Brownlow Medallist
- Jul 25, 2008
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- AFL Club
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North Melbourne V Richmond:
Saturday, July 6 2013
2.10 pm
Etihad Stadium.
It has been a contrasting 2012 and 2013 for North Melbourne and Richmond so far. In 2012, North Melbourne secured a birth in the finals, before bowing out, rather humilatingly to West Coast to the tune of 96 points. The Tigers on the other hand faltered in the close games, losing 6 out of 8 games where the margin was 12 points or less, and had critics labelling them mentally weak and fragile.
Fast Forward 9 months, and the roles have look to have reversed. Richmond find itself on the cusp of it's first finals series since 2001, sitting 9-4, and a favourable draw for the rest of the year. On the other hand, North Melbourne have been labelled as mentally soft and the "Richmond of 2013", having won 1 of 5 games with a margin of 12 points or less.
Last Week, North Melbourne looked dominant against GWS, who suffered a late omission, with Jeremy Cameron replaced by Setanta o'hAilpin. Lindsay Thomas and Drew Petrie were dominant early against a depleted GWS backline, kicking 3 goals each in the first quarter, Thomas kicking 4 for the game, and Petrie 5. It was an even contribution from most players, allowing the Kangaroos to run out with an 86 point win. Lindsay Thomas will come under scrutiny for headbutting a GWS player, and could face a week on the sidelines, if the MRP rule on recent precedent, with Jarrad Waite copping one week for his headbutt last year.
The Tigers looked impressive against a St. Kilda outfit who, especially early, turned up to play. St. Kilda's pressure early was phenomenal, and lead to some fundamental mistakes from the Tigers and allowed them to kick the first two goals of the game, before Jack Riewoldt converted his first of the afternoon, and the Tigers kicked in to action, leading by 8 points at quarter time. From there on it was all one way traffic, with the Tigers running out with a 64 point win. Jack Riewoldt was inaccurate, finishing with 3 goals, 5 behinds, in a strong, but not dominant fashion, his inability to convert costing him best on ground honours.
LAST TIME THEY MET:
22 July, 2012.
Round 17:
Richmond: 14.15.99
Def by:
North Melbourne: 15.13.103
Key Players:
Richmond:
Shane Tuck: 26 possessions, 2 goals.
Brett Deledio: 31 possession, 6 marks.
Trent Cotchin: 24 Possessions, 5 tackles, 1 goal.
North Melbourne:
Drew Petrie: 7 Marks, 6 Tackles, 7 goals, 1 behind. (5 in the last quarter)
Liam Anthony: 26 possessions, 9 marks, 2 goals.
Brent Harvey: 24 possessions, 6 marks, 1 goal.
Where North Melbourne can win the game:
North Melbourne pride themselves on their pressure on the opposition ball carrier, and ability to score from opposition turnovers. This is evident in their rankings of total points scored from turnovers, in which the Kangaroos rank 6th in the AFL, having scored a total of 672 points prior to round 14. If they can lock down the Tigers run and carry, and force them to kick to a contested situation, they Kangaroos have the capabilities to score heavily.
They are also ranked 3rd in total clearance differential in the competition, having 55 more clearances than their opposition. If they can continue to pump out big numbers around the clearances and deny the Tigers midfielders opportunity at first use, it will go a long way to winning the game, and keeping the Tigers in check.
Where Richmond can win the game:
The Tigers can win the game in the middle of the ground. They are second in the AFL for Effective Clearance percentage (Clearances that don't result in a direct turnover), and are the Number 1 ranked side in the AFL for Percentage of Clearances scored from at 31.7%. If the Tigers manage to get goalside of a clearance, they are capable of scoring well.
The Tigers can also get hold of the Kangaroos around half forward. With players such as Dustin Martin, Chris Newman and Tyrone Vickery all floating around the 50 meter line, it will isolate the Jack Riewoldt/Scott McMahon matchup. The Tigers are one of the best teams in the AFL for goals outside fifty, and, if they can get the ball in the hands of Martin, Deledio, or Newman along the half forward line, they are quite capable of impacting the scoreboard very heavily.
Key Players:
North Melbourne:
Drew Petrie: Kicked 7 goals last time these two teams met, including 5 in the final quarter on Alex Rance to single-handedly win the game for his team, who had struggled most of the game. He needs to have a big one again today if the Kangaroos are to have enough firepower to combat a solid Tigers defensive unit.
Todd Goldstein: Had 47 hitouts in the last clash, and, given the Midfield battle is going to be close to stalemate, the importance of quality service is going to come to the fore. Given Ivan Maric is going to be either a tad underdone this week, or Orren Stephenson will lineup against him, Goldstein needs to have a big influence in the middle of the ground.
Scott Thompson: Jack Riewoldt looked in rare touch last week against St. Kilda, and, if not for inaccuracy would have had a handful of goals. Thompson needs to keep Riewoldt close, and make body contact, becuase, if Riewoldt can get out onto a lead, Thompson will not be able to stop him.
Richmond:
Tyrone Vickery: After a fantastic game last week against St. Kilda, where he was given Best on Ground honours, Vickery needs to play with that intensity again this week. He needs to drag his defender (Most likely Michael Firrito) up the ground, and keep him accountable, to give Jack Riewoldt a clear run at the ball. Also needs to be able to give either Maric or Stephenson a chop out in the ruck to allow them time to rest.
Troy Chaplin: Alex Rance was outclassed and outmuscled against Drew Petrie last year. This year, Troy Chaplin has been recruited to play on the bigger, powerful forwards. Petrie has shown he can be taken out of the game by a physical defender, and, after his excellent job on Nick Riewoldt, looks certain to line up on North's main man in attack, and must keep him at his side, and use his strength to match Petrie.
Dustin Martin: Given North Melbourne's physical, contested style game, the more players that can rotate through the middle and have an impact, the better for the Tigers. Dustin needs to be able to use his strong frame to win the contested ball to deny the North midfielders easy possessions, and give Trent Cotchin and Reece Conca a breather in the forward line. If the midfield duties are left to Conca, Cotchin and Deledio, North Melbourne will be able to overrun the Tigers in the middle.
The Game will have a special meaning for the Tigers, as two of it's players, including spiritual leader and Cult Figure Jake King, and Carlton Convert, Shaun Grigg, both welcome their 100th AFL game.
It was a milestone many, if not most Richmond Supporters thought would be beyond Jake Kng's reach. He burst onto the scene in 2007 as an energetic Rebounding Defender, with a serious case of small man syndrome and a willingness to put his body on the line that endeared him to the Richmond faithful. However, playing beyond his limitations, and perceived poor skills meant he found himself in and out of the side regularly. Since then, he has transformed himself into the player that we see know. A tough, nuggetty Defensive Half Forward with a fair skill set that looks like he belongs in the AFL. King kicked 9 goals between 2007 and 2009, and since his shift to the Forward line, he has kicked 64 goals. He has gone through several changes, from the "Energizer Bunny" half back, to the novelty "Push Up King", to a now 100 game AFL player, something he himself, admitted he thought beyond him.
Shaun Grigg came to Richmond at the end of 2010, in a trade for Richmond Cult Figure Andy Collins. Having only played 43 of a possible 66 games at Carlton, Grigg became an immediate best 22 player at Richmond, and has played 56 of a possible 57 games. A gut running outside midfielder, Grigg has become a very serviceable AFL player who opposition coaches and players seem to underestimate time and time again. He has the uncanny knack of finding himself in the right place at the right time can impact on the scoreboard. Grigg kicked 10 goals in 4 seasons at the Blues, but has kicked 34 goals in 2 and a half at the Tigers. He plays within his limitations, and can be prone to a howler every now and then, particularly in his kicking, which can be erratic at times, but he has engratiated himself to the Tiger faithful, and will continue to do so.
Tip: Richmond by 24 points.
(Not as great as I hoped it would be. I had it open in Word last night and forgot to save it, and the computer got turned off. This is just a very, very rough one.)
