Richmond’s side should be familiar to North fans.
In the Tigers’ win against Essendon last week, there were six changes to the Elimination Final side the Roos defeated last year.
In: David Astbury, Corey Ellis, Shaun Hampson, Sam Lloyd, Steven Morris, Daniel Rioli
Out: Troy Chaplin, Reece Conca, Bachar Houli, Ivan Maric, Kamdyn McIntosh, Chris Newman
Of the inclusions, only Ellis and Rioli are yet to play against North Melbourne.
Richmond has tended to be a streaky side in recent seasons, a losing run often immediately followed by a long winning streak.
Again it appears to be the case. After slumping to a 1-6 record this season, the Tigers have rebounded with wins in each of their last three matches, kick started by Lloyd’s after-the-siren goal against the Swans.
While the general, big-picture elements of Richmond’s game plan have remained in place over the last few weeks – attempting to control the tempo and dominating uncontested possession in particular – there have been some individual tweaks which are paying dividends.
Dustin Martin has begun to win a lot more of his possessions in the contest, giving another dimension to the Richmond midfield.
Martin’s trend this way started just before the winning streak; in the last five games he’s registered contested disposal counts of 16, 15, 14, 14 and 15. Almost half of his total possessions have been won in this fashion – a far cry from last season when it only accounted for a third.
It’s allowed captain Trent Cotchin to shoulder less of the burden through the centre of the ground, and he’s flourished since returning from a fractured cheekbone. The Tiger has had 68 disposals in the last fortnight.
Brandon Ellis has moved into more of a half-back role since last year’s Elimination Final, when Sam Gibson so effectively minimised his influence on a wing.
The 22-year-old, who coincidentally grew up as a North supporter, has the most uncontested disposals this season for the Tigers, and stands in the upper echelon of the competition in the statistic.
Arguably the biggest change to the Richmond setup this season has been the apparent handover of the number one ruck mantle.
In his first four seasons at Punt Road, Ivan Maric had been the undisputed leader. But a pre-season injury handed the mantle to Shaun Hampson, and the former Blue hasn’t let it go.
After only 15 games in his first two seasons at Richmond, Hampson has played nine already in 2016. His tap work at stoppages has allowed the Tigers to be one of the top sides for hit-outs to advantage.
