Teammate Bachar Houli backs Jack Ross to replace injured Richmond midfielder Jack Graham for Grand Final
Jack Ross, Sydney Stack, Kamdyn McIntosh or Sydney Stack? Richmond faces a huge selection call as it weighs up how to replace injured midfielder Jack Graham for the grand final.
Richmond
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Grand final chance Jack Ross is “built for AFL football”, according to a key teammate, as Richmond’s selection dilemma comes to a head on Thursday.
The Tigers will tomorrow night reveal their team for Saturday’s premiership decider as they weigh up whether to re-call Ross — who has played just seven AFL games — defender Kamdyn McIntosh, potential debutant Marlion Pickett or breakout star Sydney Stack as a replacement for injured premiership player Jack Graham.
Premiership star Bachar Houli said Ross was a very similar prospect to Graham, who pulled the pin on his flag hopes on Tuesday due to a shoulder injury, and possessed all of the right traits for the season’s biggest day.
“I haven’t really had a proper word with him yet, but he’s built for AFL football,” Houli said.
“He was accumulating possessions and more importantly it was his hardness at the football, that’s what finals football is built upon.
“It’s about contested ball, putting your body on the line and sacrificing for your teammates.
“He’s very similar to Jacky Graham as well. Does he come in? Him and Jack are similar players, but I’m sure whoever comes in will be well prepared and well supported by the rest of the playing group.”
The club is still hopeful that Nathan Broad will feature on Saturday after sustaining a concussion in the team’s preliminary final victory over Geelong.
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Ross and McIntosh were both withdrawn from Sunday’s victorious VFL Grand Final, where Pickett shone in a best-on-ground performance that only enhanced his selection chances.
But to make a debut in a Grand Final would require serious faith, according to former Tiger and Magpie Brian Taylor.
“If I’m (Tom) Lynch and I’m asked, I’m wanting Kamdyn McIntosh (because he kicks long),” Taylor said on The Superfooty Podcast.
“You’ve got to look at it as if to say ‘Marlion Pickett playing his first game of football … can we trust him to impact the game?’.
“This is not a home and away thing where we can give him a bit of an easy ride and look after him for a week or two. They have to be sure that he is capable of actually impacting the game. Very few people … have had impact in their first games. It’s a rarity.”
Giants star Stephen Coniglio withdrew himself from selection contention yesterday, with Houli supportive of absent teammates like Graham and Alex Rance recognised with premiership medals.
“Oh yeah, absolutely, I’m all for it,” he said.
“A guy like Alex Rance — who I can’t speak enough of and his contribution to the football club — I’m sure if we win, there’ll be some sort of medal around his neck, from a player or coaching staff.
“Premierships aren’t won based on 22 players who take the field — it’s a well-earned collective performance from the wider organisation.
“To make 22 or 23 medals, let’s make 44 or 45, everyone’s happy.
“We truly mean this — it’s not about the 22 players.
“We’ve got something very significant in our football club, a photo which signifies us as a unified group with our wider team members celebrating the (2017) cup.”
Originally published as Teammate Bachar Houli backs Jack Ross to replace injured Richmond midfielder Jack Graham for Grand Final