Where and when: MCG, Saturday, May 25, 7.25pm AEST
Last time they met: MCG, round 22, 2018: Richmond 12.9 (81) defeated Essendon 11.7 (73)
Missing key midfielders Trent Cotchin, Kane Lambert and Dion Prestia, the Tigers held on to seal a tight win after the Bombers kicked the last four goals of the game. Dustin Martin was Richmond’s best, while Devon Smith led the way for Essendon.
What it means for Richmond: An opportunity for a surprise top-four berth. Given Richmond’s injury list and the calibre of players on it, few would have expected the Tigers to have won as many games as they have.
What it means for Essendon: A win would go some way to stabilising a topsy-turvy season, levelling the win-loss ledger at five apiece. The Bombers have also lost 10 of their past 12 to the Tigers.
How Richmond wins: Using its multi-pronged attack to its advantage. Richmond’s forward line is starting to really hit its straps, and they should have too many avenues to goal for Essendon to counter.
How Essendon wins: Exploiting Richmond’s lack of height around the ground. Hawthorn looked dangerous while it had two fit rucks playing, both up forward and around the ground.
The stat: Saturday night marks the 15th Dreamtime at the ‘G match, with Richmond having won eight games and Essendon saluting on six occasions. Dustin Martin is the only two-time winner of the Yiooken Award for best on ground.
The match-up: Sydney Stack v Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti
An unlikely match-up at the start of the season, but it’s set to be a highly entertaining one. The pair are as tough as nails, with Stack the fourth-highest first-year player in the AFL Player Ratings (516th overall), while the Bomber is rated 82nd overall.
It’s a big week for: John Worsfold
It’s been a strange season for Essendon, recording wins over Melbourne, Brisbane, North Melbourne and Fremantle interspersed with disappointing losses. Knocking off a confident Richmond side would be a real feather and a step towards being a legitimate finals contender.
Thommo’s Tip: Tigers by 18 points
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Zerrett starting on interchange …
So what?
Wow – quiet thread …
Richmond Tigers: 10.13.73
Bachar Houli 138
Shane Edwards 124
Dion Prestia 112
Nick Vlastuin 107
Liam Baker 104
Jack Higgins* 99
Dylan Grimes 95
Dustin Martin 88
Noah Balta 85
David Astbury 85
Josh Caddy 81
Kamdyn McIntosh 78
Brandon Ellis 68
C. Coleman-Jones 62
Sydney Stack 62
Jason Castagna 57
Nathan Broad 55
Tom J. Lynch 49
Shai Bolton 44
Connor Menadue 38
Daniel Rioli 33
Ryan Garthwaite 32
Essendon Bombers: 6.14.50
Darcy Parish 136
Tom Bellchambers 123
Zach Merrett 103
Kyle Langford 94
Andrew McGrath 92
Adam Saad 84
David Zaharakis 77
Dyson Heppell 77
Shaun McKernan 73
Dylan Shiel 71
Cale Hooker 68
Jayden Laverde 67
Patrick Ambrose 61
Conor McKenna 58
Josh Begley 58
Aaron Francis 56
Michael Hurley 53
Jake Stringer 51
Mason Redman 49
A. M-Tipungwuti 46
Matt Guelfi 43
Ben McNiece 16
Can someone tell me how dusty scores 88 with 35 touches 26 kicks 8 clearances 8 inside 50s?
Heeney 19 touches scores 82?
Dusty. Given 2nd best in a winning side. 35 disposals,8 clearances. 88 points. SPARE ME!
Analyse that in scoring anomalies!!!!!!
Went at 60% efficiency and turned it over 9 times. Also gave away four free kicks (none for) and only made one tackle.
I saw that he had 6 clangers – but 4 of those were the frees against. Also 26 of his touches were kicks, and he had the 2nd most clearances on the ground. The efficiency of the whole game was down due to the rain (around 64%). So his score seems a bit low. Might as well put him in the same boat as the Crouch brothers and Oliver
I know it’s a different game, but look at his stats compared to Joel Selwood’s