The Richmond players will have a cautionary tale to tell following last week’s after-the-siren loss to Gold Coast.
The Tigers coughed up a 40-point third-quarter lead to fall to the Suns by two points, costing them a win that would have put them a game clear inside the top eight.
In the end it wasn’t to be and now the Tigers must beat North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium this Saturday if they want to retain their spot in the eight.
In order to do that, star forward Jack Riewoldt says the playing group must quickly learn a valuable lesson from the Suns defeat and focus on what’s ahead.
“It was a genuinely flat mood post the game last week,” Riewoldt said on SEN Tassie.
“You can go one of two ways with these sort of things. You can focus on the fact we gave up the 40-point lead, which you put some of your focus on, and you have to go to correcting that.
“We were practising a little bit of saving the game, just taking time out of the game and taking the sting out of it when we get challenged.
“Momentum is probably the biggest thing in AFL football at the moment. Sides get a run-on and it’s hard to stop so we’re looking into how we can do that.
“But also, we focus on some of the great things we did in the game to get to that 40-point lead with arguably six of our best players out and seven if you include Tom Lynch, who was injured in the first 10 minutes of the game.
“Whilst we’d have loved to have won, we find ourselves still in the eight with a big chance. Hopefully we learn lessons from that game that will last with our playing group for another five years.”
Riewoldt recalls a similar last-gasp defeat in Round 9 of the 2017 season against GWS, which was the ultimate learning experience in that it helped the club go on to win a drought-breaking premiership that season.
He suggests last week’s loss could act as a similar “point in time” for the new-look Tigers group.
“I look at 2017, we lost a game to the GWS Giants up at Spotless Stadium,” Riewoldt recalled.
“Jeremy Cameron kicked a goal to win the game against us and from there we learned so many lessons that still stick with me to this day.
“Now with such a new group coming through, maybe that’s a point in time where they will learn lessons that will last for their career in terms of saving a game.
“We can’t dwell on it too much. A big game versus North Melbourne this week, one that we really need to win and we move on.”
The Tigers will meet a Kangaroos side who this week lost David Noble and will be overseen by caretaker coach Leigh Adams.
Having lost to the Roos when Rhyce Shaw took over from Brad Scott in 2019, Riewoldt has been in this position before.
He also admits there was some panic when he was checking the age of the former 104-game Roo.
“You’re always wary because you can get a bit of data off sides when they play the same way,” he added.
“But there’s a new coach bringing in a different way of playing, a different way of defending. So we’re extremely wary of that.
“The one thing I’m extremely worried about is Leigh Adams is only four months older than me. I was chatting to Robbie Tarrant yesterday and I knew that he was the same draft as myself and Shane Edwards, and we started getting a bit worried that we are actually going to be older than the guy coaching the opposition team.
“Thankfully, Patch Adams was born in April and Shedda and I were born in October. We were starting to get a bit jittery about that,” he laughed.
Subscribe to the SEN YouTube channel for the latest videos!
Riewoldt also touched on Richmond co-captain Toby Nankervis who will play against North despite hurting his knee last weekend.
“He’s so tough,” Riewoldt said of the ruckman.
“He just grinds through. He’s not going to be at 100 per cent but he just shows up and goes out and performs.
“The big ‘Nanka’, he’s ready to go.”
The Tigers will also play debutant Tyler Sonsie who was taken with pick 28 in last year’s draft.
He will debut with three-time premiership skipper and his boyhood idol Trent Cotchin, who is back from a cracked collarbone.
“People say he was a draft slider, he should have gone possibly a little bit higher than what he did,” said Riewoldt of the 19-year-old midfielder.
“A midfielder, a Richmond fan growing up, and I only found this out the other day that his favourite player is Trent Cotchin.
“He’s very talented, a great kick on both sides of his feet and an exciting prospect.
“He gets his chance this week and I think Richmond fans will be very happy with what they see. It’s exciting to see him playing.”
The Tigers face the Roos at Marvel Stadium on Saturday.
More in AFL
“This time next year…”: Cornes’ bold pick for his next AFL head coach in waiting
“I think he is the most ready head coach in waiting.”
Trade talk: Why Pies ruck should be West Coast’s “number one target”
“He's possibly the best ruckman in the competition at the moment.”
Rioli reveals depth of guilt over AFL drug saga
Willie Rioli has opened up on the emotional trauma of his AFL drug saga.