THE BELIEF at Richmond is the strongest it has been in a long while, as the club sets its sights on extending its hot form over the next month of football.
Following a 60-point demolition job of the Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium, the Tigers have now strung together three successive wins and have a foothold inside the top eight.
Save for the Essendon game in round nine - which coach Damien Hardwick described as "bad as we've played for two years" - the Tigers have been firing on all cylinders.
Sitting 8-4 and in sixth spot on the ladder, the Tigers have winnable games against St Kilda, North Melbourne and Gold Coast as they look to return to the finals for the first time since 2001.
Tigers midfielder Shaun Grigg, fresh from his 21-possession, two-goal performance against the Dogs, told AFL.com.au after the game that the Tigers needed to steel themselves for a big month.
"We've played pretty well the last couple of weeks now," Grigg said.
"If we can just keep that momentum up, and the belief's really strong at the moment, we've just got to keep playing well and keep our intensity up and hopefully we can string a few together."
No longer are the Tigers solely reliant on stars Brett Deledio and Trent Cotchin.
Richmond's developing midfield depth is personified by third-year midfielder Reece Conca.
Conca, in just his second game back in the senior side after being sidelined for six weeks with a foot injury, starred against the Western Bulldogs with 21 disposals and two goals.
Hardwick said he expects plenty of improvement for Conca, who adds toughness and class to an already star-studded midfield.
Conca's role, like so many of his lesser-known teammates, will be pivotal towards the business end of the season.
"He (Conca) is certainly finding his feet. What he has got is an uncanny ability to find his teammates through the heat of traffic," Hardwick said.
Grigg said it was the responsibility of the entire team to lessen the pressure on Deledio, Cotchin and Dustin Martin.
"We've got three of the top players in the AFL, so we just want to help them out as much as we can and give them the ball when we can," he said.
Ben Guthrie is a reporter for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_BenGuthrie
