Richmond Captain Trent Cotchin and forward Tom Lynch fronted the media at Punt Road on Monday as the Tigers prepare to take on the GIANTS in Saturday’s 2019 Toyota AFL Grand Final.
The duo had their say on the GIANTS’ preliminary final win over Collingwood, Toby Greene and Phil Davis.
On the GIANTS
Captain Cotchin gave the GIANTS great credit for their nail-biting four-point win over Collingwood last Saturday. He and the rest of his teammates are well and truly wary of the in-form GIANTS.
“They’re a fantastic team and they have been for a long period of time, not just this season but in years gone by.
“They haven’t quite been lucky enough to sneak through to the big dance but their effort and the way they played on the weekend against a quality opposition in the pies was outstanding.
“We’re really looking forward to the task at hand.”
On Toby Greene
With Toby Greene a certainty to return to the GIANTS’ starting 22 for the Grand Final, Cotchin had his say on the antagonistic way the star GIANT likes to play.
“He’s a fantastic player Toby, and no doubt that’s one of his strengths, to irritate the opposition. It’s not something we haven’t come across before.
“The person that lines up on him will probably have a job on him, but we’ll just focus on what makes us a good team and a hard team to beat.”
On the GIANTS’ Backline and Phil Davis
Forward Tom Lynch put in a fine performance as Richmond powered past Geelong in last Friday night’s preliminary final. Lynch kicked four goals but is wary that he’ll be coming up against the GIANTS’ measly backline and co-captain Phil Davis on the last Saturday in September.
“They’ve obviously got some great players down there and I think Nick Haynes has been in super form and obviously Phil Davis.
“We’re expecting him to play so I’m guessing Phil probably – pretty much every time I’ve played the GIANTS, I’ve matched up on him – so that’s the way I’m sort of looking at it at this stage.
“He’s obviously was a bit sore, but I’d be a bit foolish to think he’d be less that 100 per cent on the weekend.”
On Brett Deledio
Cotchin spoke candidly about his former team-mate Brett Deledio, who is unlikely to make his way back into the GIANTS’ side for the Grand Final. Deledio suffered a calf injury in the GIANTS’ elimination final win over the Western Bulldogs.
“You don’t want to see any players, particularly one that you spent a fair chunk of your career with, injured and miss an opportunity a he probably will this week.
“It’s sad but it’s also the reality of footy and I think the most challenging thing for me has been to see what his family has had to go through over the last couple of years rather than football.
“The reality is whilst this week we’ll focus a lot on footy, there’s a lot more to life.”
