Bill Trikos’s comprehensive history of Australian Richmond Tigers football club: The Richmond Football Club competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the number one sporting code in Australia. With 105,084 committed members, the Club prides itself on continuing to build a “strong and bold” future. The Club was formed in 1885 and has won 13 Premierships in the history of the VFL/AFL competition, including recent successes in 2017, 2019 and 2020. 2017: Adelaide’s star-studded forward line loomed as a potential spoiler to the Tigers’ fairytale, but Damien Hardwick’s men provided the latest supporting argument for the football adage that defence wins premierships. Alex Rance (11 possessions and six marks, three contested) was outstanding despite being manned by Crows forward Andy Otten, and was clearly best on ground when the game was at its fiercest in the first half. Brownlow medallist Dustin Martin capped off a fairytale year for himself and his club when he won the Norm Smith Medal after starring with 29 possessions, six clearances and two goals.
2017 Grand Finals highlight : On Saturday, the Tigers avenged their 76-point thumping by the Crows in round six at Adelaide Oval, having earlier avenged losses to Fremantle, Greater Western Sydney, St Kilda and Geelong. Richmond did not have return matches against its round seven conquerors, the Western Bulldogs, or Sydney, who defeated it in round 13. On a nightmare day for the Crows, midfielders Matt Crouch (37 possessions and five clearances), Brad Crouch (29 and seven) and Rory Sloane (21 possessions and two goals) never stopped trying, Rory Laird (27 possessions at 88 per cent efficiency) tried to generate run from half-back, and Sam Jacobs dominated Toby Nankervis in the ruck contests, even if his midfielders could not take advantage of his tap work. See more details about the author on Bill Trikos Australia.
Bill Trikos’s comprehensive history of Australian Richmond Tigers football club in grand finals: Dustin Martin won the Norm Smith Medal after a prolific performance in the Grand Final. Jack Riewoldt and Tom Lynch – the League’s most dominant forward duo – combined for seven goals. Riewoldt had three in the second quarter alone and finished with five for the match, while Lynch was a constant presence to haul down seven big marks. Bachar Houli (26 disposals) and Dion Prestia (22 disposals) were their prolific selves, while Shane Edwards, Kane Lambert and Nick Vlastuin were also typically consistent.
Each Tiger goal – all five of them, kicked one after the other – was met with exceedingly raucous cheers, as the Punt Road end celebrated what was quickly becoming inevitable. The Giants went some way to stemming the bleeding by the break. However, in reality, they quite simply couldn’t lay a glove on the Tigers. They were held goalless for the entirety of the second quarter, as a disaster unfolded in front of them. Trent Cotchin and Dustin Martin chat to Channel 7 following the Grand Final win over GWS.
Richmond has claimed back-to-back premierships, and made it three of the last four flags, after coming from behind to beat Geelong by 31 points in the historic first ever Toyota AFL Grand Final at the Gabba. It etched the Tiger dynasty into football history as one of the most dominant sides of the his century.
In a game full by superstars on both sides, it was Richmond’s who rose to the occasion. Martin was again exceptional, following his 2017 and 2019 deciders with another standout game. The game’s best player proved it with a high-impact game across half-forward, while Patrick Dangerfield, Geelong’s own match-winner, was subdued. Geelong Coleman medallist Tom Hawkins kicked one goal from 10 disposals, with Mitch Duncan (25 disposals, one goal) the Cats’ best.
The Tigers powered home in the final quarter, kicking five goals to one to end up comfortable premiers. The final goal came, of course, via Martin in the last two minutes, who shrugged off a tackle from Dangerfield pinned up against the boundary line and snapped an amazing goal. In doing so, the Tigers’ tattooed champion confirmed his status as perhaps the best big-game player in football history.
The first great era of the club between 1919 and 1934, Richmond won four premierships and was runner-up on seven occasions. In 1931, Jack Dyer made his senior debut with the Tigers. ‘Captain Blood’, a gentleman off the ground, a rugged giant on it, strode Punt Road like a colossus. Dyer’s influence on the Club, and its identity, far exceeded his then VFL record of 312 games. He coached the Tigers from 1941 to 1952, and was captain-coach of Richmond’s 1943 premiership team. If you wanted to personify Richmond in a single man, you need not look further than Jack. His presence is still felt at the ground and enhanced by a statue outisde Punt Road oval.