AFL 2025: Richmond debutant showed ‘similar traits’ to champion Dustin Martin

Richmond’s No.1 pick Sam Lalor made a splash on debut, with his coach drawing comparisons to one of the game’s greatest players.

Richmond coach Adem Yze sees the parallels between No.1 pick Sam Lalor and champion Dustin Martin in that the Tigers “almost need two of him”.

Lalor was the round 1 Rising Star nomination for his 18-disposal, two-goal performance against Carlton last Thursday night.

While he was drafted as a star midfielder, Lalor spent the majority of his debut playing as a forward.

Yze originally planned on protecting Lalor from the “crash and bash” of the midfield after his pre-season jaw injury before he proved a valuable asset inside 50.

“We’ll grow that part of his game (midfield), the pre-season he had he trained as a midfielder, he’s done a bit of forward craft,” he said.

“We just thought we’d get him out of the crash and bash early with his jaw and get him feeling like he’s belonging on an AFL field.

“Then in the second half you would’ve seen a bit more exposure as a midfielder and we’ll just start to grow those parts of his game.

“We almost need two of him, similar to Dusty, the talent he’s got in the front end and then obviously the impact he can have as a midfielder.”

Sam Lalor celebrates one of his two goals on debut. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Yze wants to hold back from mounting further pressure on Lalor but sees the comparison between him and the three-time Norm Smith Medal winner.

The Tigers coach is confident the conversation will soon shift from who Lalor is like to who he is.

“I don’t want to put that pressure on him but he has similar traits, he will be the best version of Sam Lalor,” Yze said.

“In 10 years’ time we will be talking about Sam Lalor for who he is, not who he played like.

“His impact in the front end, air and ground, and then when he goes inside he knows what he’s doing and he’s a big boy.

“We’ve just got to temper that and make sure we’re not throwing him to the wolves early and manage him through the year.”

The flipping Seth Campbell paved the way for Richmond’s resting of younger players last season. Picture: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Part of Yze’s management of Lalor and the other top draftees will be a rest at some point of the season.

Yze says it will come but not in the immediate future as Richmond looks to build “consistent AFL footballers”.

“Throughout the year we will look at that, it will be around training load and how many games in a row they’ve played,” he said.

“There will be those discussions, but we’re not at that point right now. We had Seth Campbell last year, he wasn’t used to playing so much footy.

“I think it was round 19 we gave him a break. We will look at those things post the bye, but right now we’re getting our boys to learn to endure, play week to week and be consistent AFL footballers.”

Originally published as AFL 2025: Richmond debutant showed ‘similar traits’ to champion Dustin Martin