Tigers must share the load: Frawley
2:29:20 PM Fri 14 March, 2003
Paul Gough
afl.com.au
The Tigers may have lost one of their prime movers in Brad Ottens for the first half of the season and been bundled out of the Wizard Cup at the first hurdle, but Richmond coach Danny Frawley insists it's not all doom and gloom at Punt Road.
Instead, Frawley wants his team, which slipped from 3rd to 14th in 2002 and which will start this season arguably under greater pressure than any other club, not to be judged at least until the home and away season gets underway.
"I am just hoping the football world, and more importantly the Richmond members and supporters, judge us on what happens over the 22 weeks starting in two weeks time", Frawley said on Friday.
"Collingwood didn't win a pre-season game last year and they struggled early in the year and they only got over the line by a point against West Coast in round two."
"If they had lost that game they would have been zip/three and with no pre-season wins and look where they ended up."
Frawley said the club had already put the disaster of losing Ottens, their number one ruckman and second best forward after Matthew Richardson, to a back injury behind them.
"Initially I was disappointed as all the players were", Frawley said when he learned of Ottens' injury on Wednesday.
"But he is just one of 39 players and we've just got to share the load."
"That's been our focus all pre-season, to make sure we share the load and probably that load is going to be shared a hell of a lot more now."
Richmond skipper Wayne Campbell said he believed too much had been made of the loss of Ottens with many pundits all but writing off the Tigers' as contenders this season once news of his serious injury emerged.
"The next day when I started reading the paper I thought all hell had broken loose and then I thought about it again and thought we just have to step up as individuals and players and cover for him", he said of the loss of Ottens.
"He is very good player but I suppose when (football manager) Greg Hutchison stood up in front of the group and said Brad was out, my initial thought was Greg Stafford will have to ruck a little bit more and Ray Hall will have to play a little bit more and that was all I thought of it."
"Then I read the paper and I thought - have I thought about this too lightly? - and then I thought about it again and thought, No we have never relied on one player, we can't rely on one player and sides that do don't end up being good sides."
"Our opposition in round one (Collingwood) has shown that you can't rely on one player, they have become a good side since they have shared the load (after for years being accused of being over-reliant on skipper Nathan Buckley) and that's what we are aiming to do."
2:29:20 PM Fri 14 March, 2003
Paul Gough
afl.com.au
The Tigers may have lost one of their prime movers in Brad Ottens for the first half of the season and been bundled out of the Wizard Cup at the first hurdle, but Richmond coach Danny Frawley insists it's not all doom and gloom at Punt Road.
Instead, Frawley wants his team, which slipped from 3rd to 14th in 2002 and which will start this season arguably under greater pressure than any other club, not to be judged at least until the home and away season gets underway.
"I am just hoping the football world, and more importantly the Richmond members and supporters, judge us on what happens over the 22 weeks starting in two weeks time", Frawley said on Friday.
"Collingwood didn't win a pre-season game last year and they struggled early in the year and they only got over the line by a point against West Coast in round two."
"If they had lost that game they would have been zip/three and with no pre-season wins and look where they ended up."
Frawley said the club had already put the disaster of losing Ottens, their number one ruckman and second best forward after Matthew Richardson, to a back injury behind them.
"Initially I was disappointed as all the players were", Frawley said when he learned of Ottens' injury on Wednesday.
"But he is just one of 39 players and we've just got to share the load."
"That's been our focus all pre-season, to make sure we share the load and probably that load is going to be shared a hell of a lot more now."
Richmond skipper Wayne Campbell said he believed too much had been made of the loss of Ottens with many pundits all but writing off the Tigers' as contenders this season once news of his serious injury emerged.
"The next day when I started reading the paper I thought all hell had broken loose and then I thought about it again and thought we just have to step up as individuals and players and cover for him", he said of the loss of Ottens.
"He is very good player but I suppose when (football manager) Greg Hutchison stood up in front of the group and said Brad was out, my initial thought was Greg Stafford will have to ruck a little bit more and Ray Hall will have to play a little bit more and that was all I thought of it."
"Then I read the paper and I thought - have I thought about this too lightly? - and then I thought about it again and thought, No we have never relied on one player, we can't rely on one player and sides that do don't end up being good sides."
"Our opposition in round one (Collingwood) has shown that you can't rely on one player, they have become a good side since they have shared the load (after for years being accused of being over-reliant on skipper Nathan Buckley) and that's what we are aiming to do."
