Mick Malthouse says Toby Nankervis is Richmond’s most important player
FORGET the ‘big four’. Toby Nankervis is the most important player in Richmond’s quest for back-to-back premierships — and could hold the key to beating them, writes Mick Malthouse.
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HE IS a weapon of mass destruction, but his lone presence also poses a problem for Richmond.
Toby Nankervis, at 199cm tall, isn’t huge by a ruckman’s standards, but his influence on the Tigers and the result of their games is always big.
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The problem is, there’s only one of him. Richmond doesn’t have a genuine second ruckman.
Shaun Grigg, 9cm shorter than Nankervis, is the back up and he does a fine job — I certainly don’t want to diminish his ability or his role in the team — but he needs help to cover the big hole left every time Nankervis takes a seat on the interchange bench.
Richmond’s preliminary final opponent will no doubt look at every stoppage Nankervis has gone to compared to when he is off the ground, breaking it down to clearances versus non-clearances, and this may very well be the Tigers’ Achilles heel.
But Richmond’s coaching hierarchy has acknowledged this all year and seems comfortable with the net numbers and how the team copes, which suggests the Tigers are not as hurt on the scoreboard as most people think.
Then again, I don’t think this has been entirely exploited by every opponent.
The Tigers can be exposed at the stoppages in the opposition’s forward line, where Grigg, lacking height, sometimes passes the tap work over to defender David Astbury. It has worked reasonably well for Richmond, but this is where it is most vulnerable to be scored against and where real damage can be done.
In contrast, in the Tigers’ forward line Grigg’s stand-in seems to be selected at random which can throw out the opposition ruckman. And often, the Tigers ruck doesn’t even contest the ball, instead becoming an intercept or receiving player at ground level, confusing the defenders further. This often works to Richmond’s advantage.
In the Tigers’ qualifying final win against Hawthorn, Nankervis took part in 65 ruck contests with Grigg, Jack Riewoldt, Daniel Rioli and Astbury combining for another 32. Twice the Tigers didn’t have anyone contest the ruck.
For the 83 per cent of game time that Nankervis plays, his responsibility and reliability factor is incredible. Enough to make him the Tigers’ most important player.
His mobility allows him to follow up well in the middle, he can take a mark deep in defence, or get forward and kick a goal. He is a wonderful team player and just gets involved a lot.
Richmond’s style of bullocking the ball forward at all cost and the preparedness of its players to get numbers to the ball is the biggest challenge for the opposition to counter, and it all begins with Nankervis.
One has to remember that this technique is as much about commitment as it is about consistency, to be match winning.
If Richmond’s intensity is not played at 100 per cent, or if it’s met head on by an opponent, it can be deeply flawed, as GWS displayed in Round 17 when it was able to clear the ball out and over the top of the Richmond backline for a tight win. Incidentally, West Coast was also very effective at this in Round 9, beating the Tigers by 47 points.
But the Tigers’ ferocity against Hawthorn in the qualifying final was extraordinary. The Hawks simply couldn’t stand up to the heat they faced all over the ground.
As Richmond’s winning streak at the MCG mounts (it sits at 22), it gets closer to a conclusion at some stage. I’m just not convinced it will happen this year.
And Nankervis is the key to ensuring the record remains intact.
In a team with standouts like Dustin Martin, Trent Cotchin, Alex Rance and Jack Riewoldt, Nankervis is singularly the most important player when it comes to Richmond’s back-to-back flag chances.
Nic Naitanui is possibly the league’s best ruckman, purely because of his athleticism, but without him the Eagles have covered his loss with Scott Lycett and Nathan Vardy working in tandem. Against Collingwood’s Brodie Grundy in the qualifying final, they had 21 combined fewer hit-outs than the Magpies, but the clearances were virtually even so there was no distinct advantage for the Pies.
In the other qualifying final, Nankervis had 27 hit-outs against Hawthorn’s Ben McEvoy and Jonathan Ceglar who combined for 55 taps, but again the clearances were similar, with the Hawks on top 43-42. Richmond stayed in the game and eventually came out on top.
In 2010, Darren Jolly was our missing link at Collingwood. Big, strong, experienced, hardworking and well liked by his teammates, in his first year at the club Jolly became our premiership X-factor. I’m not sure we would have won without him.
Similarly in 1992 with the Eagles, Paul Harding’s arrival at the club was vital to our premiership chances. Basically, we needed his height, strength and ability in the centre to win the Grand Final.
Essendon great Simon Madden is the only genuine ruckman to win a Norm Smith Medal (1985) but, should Richmond progress, Nankervis may become the second.
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