Richo gets life

[admin]

Richmond rewards Richardson by making him a life member . . .
By David Rood
January 31 2003

Enigmatic full-forward Matthew Richardson was last night awarded life membership at Richmond after playing 150 games with the club.

The 27-year-old, a two-time All-Australian made his debut in the yellow and black in 1993, but it was Richardson's 91 goals in 1996 that cemented his place among the AFL's elite.

The life membership honour follows a 2002 season in which Richardson continued his tradition of both electrifying and frustrating the Tiger faithful.

Despite managing only 13 games because of a run of hamstring injuries and being axed from the side for poor on-field discipline, Richardson still managed to finish second in the club's best and fairest.

With Richardson out of contract at the end of the season, speculation about Richardson's future as a Tiger peaked when he was dropped to VFL side Coburg for poor body language directed towards teammates Matthew Knights and David Rodan.

The indiscretion, in the Tigers' one-point loss to wooden-spooner Carlton in round 14, was in Richardson's 150th game.

Only four rounds later, Richardson became a matchwinner in the Tigers' game against Melbourne. The full-forward turned on a scintillating third-quarter performance, kicking four goals in 20 minutes.

In October, and after 157 games, Richardson ended talk of his departure from the Tigers when he signed a three-year contract that will keep him at the club until 2005.

 

[Koalalill]

Yes he did and gave a fantastic acceptance speech. great to see Bull there as well

Say what you will about Richo - but he really does love the Club

 

[mellowyellow]

There are many things that matty can be acccused of, but his luv for the tigers isn't one of them .

Welll done richo, well deserved.

 

[julzqld]

What did he say? What did he say?

 

[froars]

I love you Richo

Don't listen to anyone who said i wanted to trade you ;D

 

[Koalalill]

What did he say?   What did he say?

In summary Julz,

He has always followed Richmond and first memory is of the 1980 GF
He is exceptionally proud that he now shares life M'ship with his Dad. He said it was an honour
Thanked his parents
That there have been ups and downs but he has always and always will love the Club.
He was never going to leave (and I confirm this first hand) and will always be at Richmond
He thanked his coaches but said he would like to play out the rest of career with just the one coach in Danny.
And he thanked the supporters for their passion and loyalty and said how much it meant to him to play in front of the most passionate supporters in the league

 

[Tigerdog]

ONYA RICHO!!

For all those Tigers who bag him and Bowdo ... I for one would hate them to be playing against us!

Sure Richo has his ups and downs but thats half the entertainment value, you just never know what the big fella is gonna do
I never believed he would leave the Tigers nor do I believe we were prepared to trade him.
A few seasons ago I heard a quote abot Richo if it didnt come from an official at the club, it came from a radio commentator ........ I had to chuckle in amusement beacause i could see it happening... so here it is.....
"If they ever trade Richo or talk of it seriously, they (The Tiger Fans) will burn down the grandstand at punt rd"!!

Was also Dermie ( I hate that mongrel) who said a few years ago if he Richo ever turns it on for four quarters he'll kick 16 one day!

Got a feeling we may never see 16 but 14 would be nice in the season opener against last years grand finalists
on the way to thumping them by that same margin

Round 1 Collingwood versus Richmond
three votes M.Richardson Richmond.....I can hear Wayne already at the Brownlow count ;D

 

[MC24]

Round 1 Collingwood versus Richmond
three votes M.Richardson Richmond.....I can hear Wayne already at the Brownlow count  ;D

Yeah and I hope he's learnt how to pronounce Coughlan by then too. ;D

 

[MC24]

Well done Richo.

I agree with your comments Tigerdog.

Whatever anyone says or thinks about Richo, ya just gotta love him.

 

[admin]

What I love about Richmond is what I love about Richo too.
All the highs and lows of roller coaster ride.
Extremely unpredictable, but never boring.
Onya Richo.

 

[gustiger12]

I reckon getting dropped to the Magoo's will be the turning point in the Big Fellas career and I expect a big Year from Richo this year.

The improved midfield should assist him nicely this year with a bit more consistent delivery into the forward 50.

Congratulation Richo....

As said above, I am glad he is with us not against us....

Robert WALLS also said a couple of years ago, Richo will kick a bag one day and this will be the year.

 

[Rampaging_Richo]

A point that is often mentioned is how good would Richo be if he played with Brisbane/Port etc..Unstoppable would be the answer.

With the improved delivery capabilities, I would expect Richo to absolutely carve blokes up.

There is nobody who can keep up with him in all facets. He is super quick, can run all day, and it very strong. Even Jon Hay who I rate as the best backman in the league couldn't contain Richo as soon as the ball was delivered properly.

The day that Wallsy talks about is not to far away, and when it arrives it will be like watching Ablett in full flight.

And I am not one bit biased as you can tell by my monicker

 

[Rampaging_Richo]

And by the way..Well done Richo, thoroughly deserved.

 

[julzqld]

What a man! What a guy! I'm glad he's on our side!!!
:-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-*

 

[PMac]

Captain Richo....

A question for the masses (that may have been asked before), should the Tigers make Richo captain?

Personally I dont think Campo is soft or a freeloader but I cant deny that as leaders go he's lacking that magical X-factor that makes you want to walk tall that a captain needs. Sometimes you get the impression that Campo is the ultimate professional footballer, he plays well because thats what he's paid to do, not because his heart and souls in it.

Richo, on the other hand appears to have that x-factor in spades. His form is a rollercoaster and his behaviour sometimes questionable but there's no doubt he lives and breathes the tigers. And while he gives his teammates a spray it's amazing to watch how much taller they walk when he gives them that little clap after something good.

It's too late to do anything this year (at least without slapping Campo in the face - something he doesnt deserve). But with Campo moving out of the midfield into a more defensive role (hence out of the limelight) 2004 would be an excellent time to quietly depose him and give the Captaincy to Richo.

 

[mightytiges]

Captain Richo....

A question for the masses (that may have been asked before), should the Tigers make Richo captain?.

If you asked this question after the Carlton game you'd get a definite no. If you asked this question after the London game then the answer would be he could make a good captain if offered the job.

I doubt now that Richo will ever be offered the captaincy given his age. The club would be looking at younger types like Otto, Bowden or even Johnson or Cogs to take over the reigns from Campo.

In Campo's defence we can't judge whether his teammates walk tall for him or not unless you are one of them. Yes he doesn't have that X-factor but neither did Bickley, Mark Thompson or even Michael Tuck yet they were premiership captains. They just were consistent and professional in everything they did and were admired for it by their respective teammates.
I reckon Campo can come across at times as a bit cynical but that maybe because he barracked for richmond and knows the club and some of its supporters all too well. He also probably and unfairly got caught up in the crossfire when the captaincy was taken off Knighter and given to him.



.

 

[MC24]

Captain Richo....

A question for the masses (that may have been asked before), should the Tigers make Richo captain?

Personally I dont think Campo is soft or a freeloader but I cant deny that as leaders go he's lacking that magical X-factor that makes you want to walk tall that a captain needs.   Sometimes you get the impression that Campo is the ultimate professional footballer, he plays well because thats what he's paid to do, not because his heart and souls in it.

Richo, on the other hand appears to have that x-factor in spades.   His form is a rollercoaster and his behaviour sometimes questionable but there's no doubt he lives and breathes the tigers.  And while he gives his teammates a spray it's amazing to watch how much taller they walk when he gives them that little clap after something good.

It's too late to do anything this year (at least without slapping Campo in the face - something he doesnt deserve).  But with Campo moving out of the midfield into a more defensive role (hence out of the limelight) 2004 would be an excellent time to quietly depose him and give the Captaincy to Richo.

Tend to agree with much of what you say PMac. Not sure if Richo is the right choice or not, but I get the impression that we could have a new Captain in 2004. Will have to see what this season brings before determining whether there will be a change or not and who that might be.

 

[londontiger]

I would rather see Richo kick over 100 goals and win a brownlow . (A premiership would follow of course)

Next Richmond Captain should be Ray Hall.

I know that is a few years off, but he is pretty level headed.

Hope his footballing abilities improve after I have talked him up.

Probably the next forum question would be, if the next captain isn't Richo, then who would it be??

 

[John Fleming]

Above all other criteria, i think a captain should be judged by his performances when the chips are down, not in the good times. Richardson would be fantastic as a captain when all is going well. He is a dynamic player, an extraordinary athlete and makes the mercurial look easy and vice versa. But when things aren't going his way, i doubt he has the mental toughness to fulfill a captain's role.

Unless he goes to see a psychologist and works on eliminating his tantrum throwing, i dont think he is the man for the job. He always reminds me of that kid we all knew at primary school, who took his bat and ball and went home after he got dismissed in cricket. Unless Richo loses the primary school mentality, i would rather have a consistent, un-inspiring but all round excellent player who always performs week in week out at the helm of my team. I know all you Richo lovers will want to behead me for these sentiments, but think with your heads and not your hearts for a moment.

I think, though its slightly premature to suggest so, that Coughlan should be the next player to take the captain's reigns. Possibly at the end of 2004 or 2005, or whenever Campbell decides to pull the plug. Coughlan jsut seems to have that ferocity in the trenches that only few people possess, and his strength for a young bloke is definitely imposing to say the least. Moreover he doesn't appear to have the temporamental shortcommings that Richo has, and he seems a player you could be confident in to weather any tough times and keep plugging away till the bitter end, in contrast to someone who will drop their bundle and have a sook when the going gets tough. Now to me, these are a true captain's qualities.

 

[gustiger12]

i would rather have a consistent, un-inspiring but all round excellent player who always performs week in week out at the helm of my team.

Not to sure that I would want an uninspiring captain, but it doesn't really matter what we say because very few of us are really close enough to that inner sanctum to know who those players are who possess those unquantifiable leadership qualities that make great captains.  Most of us can only speculate based on what we observe over 100 minutes each week.

Whatever we decide the fact is that Cambo is the Captain and all I can say is lets bring it on.....

Go Tigers

I think that someone like JOHNSON maybe able to step into this role, but don't really know what his leadership qualities are, but certainly has the pedigree.