Richmond fans have been treated to the development of this academy since 2016 when (based on a Balme? tip) we set Craig McRae as reserves coach. I described the group he inherited as "football toxic" at the time. Sure there were indivuduals involved but it was the culture of self-first that really stunk the joint up.
In 2016 McRae taught the reserves the bargain of compliance for freedom. He taught them every known game style and method, most clearly from pick the perimeter to rip the guts. And brought on Daniel, George, Broad, Butts et al.
And we saw the fruit of that education in 2017. And onwards. And by 2020 it was clear that RFC Academy was the finest in all the lands.
At the end of 2022 RFC brought in Tim Taranto and Jacob Hopper. Players with strengths and weaknesses. Just the types to profit from the culture and learning of RFC's teaching and development programmes. I believe each has said as much and Taranto has gone so far as to say that he moved to Richmond to be coached by Damien Hardwick, perceived head of the famed academy.
In a bizarre and unprecedented twist Damien Hardwick walked out on the club in May with eighteen months remaining on his contract.
There was no way of knowing the likely extent and nature of the fallout. RFC had to go into damage control. All football programmes within the club were at least impeded if not derailed and the club was forced to go to the market urgently for the second most important football appointment at the academy. The new coach was selected from a field of two outsiders and three staff.
And further to coach's exit came the departures of assistants McQualter and Xavier Clarke. There was the poaching of the data analyst and later the recruiting manager.
There were new appointments in Newman and Ziebell.
The football side of RFC was at least in crisis for all of 23 and the urgency of appointments did nothing to enhance the number of candidates. Not to say that impacted quality it impacted the likelihood of success.
RFC limped through 2023 and is now beginning to show the work of its newly staffed football academy.
In Round Nowt RFC fielded a side that simply did not play football for the first hour of the season. For the entire hour. Lack of player investment and zero organisation. Were we beginning to see the unravelling of the club? There was some rallying after half time but nothing much.
RFC rested players going into the game and that is a big risk. Perhaps the lack of player investment was an abberation.
Round One shaped as season defining. The rested players were sent out. And RFC looked sound, super organised and explosive. But for the injury carnage RFC wins that game. Promising.
The reserves played their first game on Saturday. A curtain raiser to the ones but the main event in terms of player education. Methods and systems at our football prep school. Organisation and investment. The talent about the place was acceptable and we got away with the win on the road. Remember the rules - good teams travel; well-coached teams travel. And the reserves travelled.
What was clear even on the stream is that this reserves side is super organised. Drilled to within an inch of their lives. Fluent in ball movement and attack. Still learning situation and defence but learning and largely educated. The academy is in place.
We got good news in R1 with the way we played and that RFC could once again plan to win. We got good news in that reserves game - that the club could teach football at prep level.
And we took that good news into R2 at home where I thought we faced a ten goal hiding.
Ben Miller #1 back? Ouch. Lefau. Trezise. Brown. Banks. Campbell. Dow? Six is way too many playing their third or whatever game. Lynch second up for a year and off a three lap preseason. Martin half right. There's not much left. That side will probably not be competitive.
What did we see? A super organised ambush. A side undermanned dice rolling to stay in the game and even hit the lead. We could have sandbagged the margin but we kept rolling the dice and trying to squeak the win. Sure it was outside and too free but it's February or whatever. It's the right time to work on ball movement.
Did we rip the fabric of their defence through the guts? Did we pick the perimeter? That's Richmond ball. Did we play the game on our terms? We did for a long time after we recovered from early mistakes.
Did we get robbed by umpires? It looked that way to me. Did we run out of puff? Did we bungle? Did the children get a bit lost? Sure. But we played bold football, even Preeeemiership football at times.
The RFC academy can rebuild this football team.
In 2016 McRae taught the reserves the bargain of compliance for freedom. He taught them every known game style and method, most clearly from pick the perimeter to rip the guts. And brought on Daniel, George, Broad, Butts et al.
And we saw the fruit of that education in 2017. And onwards. And by 2020 it was clear that RFC Academy was the finest in all the lands.
At the end of 2022 RFC brought in Tim Taranto and Jacob Hopper. Players with strengths and weaknesses. Just the types to profit from the culture and learning of RFC's teaching and development programmes. I believe each has said as much and Taranto has gone so far as to say that he moved to Richmond to be coached by Damien Hardwick, perceived head of the famed academy.
In a bizarre and unprecedented twist Damien Hardwick walked out on the club in May with eighteen months remaining on his contract.
There was no way of knowing the likely extent and nature of the fallout. RFC had to go into damage control. All football programmes within the club were at least impeded if not derailed and the club was forced to go to the market urgently for the second most important football appointment at the academy. The new coach was selected from a field of two outsiders and three staff.
And further to coach's exit came the departures of assistants McQualter and Xavier Clarke. There was the poaching of the data analyst and later the recruiting manager.
There were new appointments in Newman and Ziebell.
The football side of RFC was at least in crisis for all of 23 and the urgency of appointments did nothing to enhance the number of candidates. Not to say that impacted quality it impacted the likelihood of success.
RFC limped through 2023 and is now beginning to show the work of its newly staffed football academy.
In Round Nowt RFC fielded a side that simply did not play football for the first hour of the season. For the entire hour. Lack of player investment and zero organisation. Were we beginning to see the unravelling of the club? There was some rallying after half time but nothing much.
RFC rested players going into the game and that is a big risk. Perhaps the lack of player investment was an abberation.
Round One shaped as season defining. The rested players were sent out. And RFC looked sound, super organised and explosive. But for the injury carnage RFC wins that game. Promising.
The reserves played their first game on Saturday. A curtain raiser to the ones but the main event in terms of player education. Methods and systems at our football prep school. Organisation and investment. The talent about the place was acceptable and we got away with the win on the road. Remember the rules - good teams travel; well-coached teams travel. And the reserves travelled.
What was clear even on the stream is that this reserves side is super organised. Drilled to within an inch of their lives. Fluent in ball movement and attack. Still learning situation and defence but learning and largely educated. The academy is in place.
We got good news in R1 with the way we played and that RFC could once again plan to win. We got good news in that reserves game - that the club could teach football at prep level.
And we took that good news into R2 at home where I thought we faced a ten goal hiding.
Ben Miller #1 back? Ouch. Lefau. Trezise. Brown. Banks. Campbell. Dow? Six is way too many playing their third or whatever game. Lynch second up for a year and off a three lap preseason. Martin half right. There's not much left. That side will probably not be competitive.
What did we see? A super organised ambush. A side undermanned dice rolling to stay in the game and even hit the lead. We could have sandbagged the margin but we kept rolling the dice and trying to squeak the win. Sure it was outside and too free but it's February or whatever. It's the right time to work on ball movement.
Did we rip the fabric of their defence through the guts? Did we pick the perimeter? That's Richmond ball. Did we play the game on our terms? We did for a long time after we recovered from early mistakes.
Did we get robbed by umpires? It looked that way to me. Did we run out of puff? Did we bungle? Did the children get a bit lost? Sure. But we played bold football, even Preeeemiership football at times.
The RFC academy can rebuild this football team.
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