RICHMOND'S leaders have made a stand and reinvigorated the club's season, spearheading a spirited five-point win over Collingwood in one of the games of the season at the MCG.
In a thrilling contest full of lead changes and momentum shifts, senior Tigers Trent Cotchin and Brett Deledio took control in the big moments to deliver a memorable 16.9 (105) to 15.10 (100) win.
With less than five minutes to play, key forwards Ty Vickery and then Jack Riewoldt sealed the result with back-to-back goals, giving the Tigers one of their best wins under coach Damien Hardwick.
Labelled a week-to-week proposition by Hardwick as he battles a calf problem, Deledio underlined how valuable he is to the Tigers with two clutch goals in the fourth quarter.
He finished with 30 possessions (10 contested) and 13 marks, spending significant time deep in the forward line.
He was only shaded by Cotchin, who willed the Tigers over the line in a captain's performance, finishing with 32 possessions (18 contested) six clearances and two goals.
The game had it all, with hard tackling from both teams, 10 lead changes and big goals from power forwards Travis Cloke (three) and Riewoldt (four).
There were moments when Collingwood looked set to break the match open and cruise to their fifth win for the season, but every time Richmond responded.
The win ended a three-game losing streak for the Tigers and ensured their season remained alive after a 2-4 start to the year that heaped pressure on Hardwick.
"I would like to say for the majority of the time I've been here, Richmond sides never drop their heads," Hardwick said post-match.
"They try, they make mistakes, but to their credit they battle on.
"We've seen it time and time again over the last couple of years, our players will actually respond at various stages.
"We've just got to continue to play the style of footy we know we can and continue to get some development into those younger players coming through."
Defender Alex Rance stood tall in a number of roles, starting on-ball but finishing on Cloke when the Magpies' spearhead got himself rolling.
Making the win more significant was the fact the Tigers did it without their best player this season, Shane Edwards, who was a late withdrawal.
They also got over the line while blooding debutants Connor Menadue and Liam McBean.
Cloke started opposed to second-gamer Todd Elton and by the first break he had taken six marks and kicked one goal as the Magpies built a 20-point lead.
Midfielder Dane Swan – who would go on to finish with 32 possessions and 11 clearances as the Magpies' best player – had also run riot through the midfield.
The Tigers needed their leaders to respond and that's exactly what happened in the second term, with Cotchin and ruckman Ivan Maric getting on top in the middle and each pushing forward to kick goals.
Rance won a number of crucial contests as a loose man and after the Tigers kicked five goals in nine minutes in the second quarter the Tigers had a 10-point lead.
The Magpies' loss was soured by what appeared to be a minor knee injury for defender Alan Toovey.
Coach Nathan Buckley was left to rue his team's second-quarter lapse, which saw the Magpies concede eight goals to three in a 36-point turnaround.
"I thought we were dominant early at the contests and our ball movement looked really sharp, but we probably left a couple of goals out there upon quarter-time," he said.
"The second quarter was really disappointing. Our tackle efficiency was poor, so we didn't stick a lot of tackles, we couldn't stop them on turnover.
"It was a breakdown of the way we want to play."
Dustin Martin charges up field during his big day against Collingwood. Picture: AFL Media
RICHMOND 1.2 9.5 12.6 16.9 (105)
COLLINGWOOD 4.4 7.5 12.7 15.10 (100)
GOALS
Richmond: Riewoldt 4, Vickery 3, Grigg 2, Cotchin 2, Deledio 2, McIntosh, Morris, Maric
Collingwood: Cloke 3, Elliott 2, Crisp 2, Swan 2, White 2, De Goey, Broomhead, Blair, Witts
BEST
Richmond: Cotchin, Deledio, Riewoldt, Maric, Grigg, Rance, Vickery
Collingwood: Swan, Cloke, Adams, Crisp, Williams, Pendlebury
INJURIES
Richmond: Houli (shoulder), Edwards (calf) replaced in the selected side by Menadue
Collingwood: Toovey (knee)
SUBSTITUTES
Richmond: Connor Menadue replaced Liam McBean at three-quarter time
Collingwood: Patrick Karnezis replaced Alan Toovey (knee) in the second quarter
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Farmer, Stephens, Schmitt
Official crowd: 59,034 at the MCG
