Jack Riewoldt says ‘harsh truths’ are coming at Richmond as review into poor season is completed

RICHMOND is bracing for “harsh truths” to be revealed in its club review, star forward Jack Riewoldt has admitted.

RICHMOND is bracing for “harsh truths” to be revealed in its club review, star forward Jack Riewoldt has admitted.

The club engaged Ernst and Young to complete a comprehensive review of the football club after a disappointing 2016 campaign, and Riewoldt said some “hard conversations” will no doubt need to be had when the review is handed down, which could be as soon as early next week.

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“It’s just a stage where we look to get better. That’s the reason we put ourselves under the microscope — because our performances weren’t up to scratch,” he said on Tuesday night.

“There’s probably going to be some harsh truths that come through from it, as you’d expect from a pretty poor season, but that’s part and parcel of the game and the nature of the beast.

“You can’t sit back and fall into a pothole and not fix it.

Jack Riewoldt says “harsh truths” are coming at Richmond after review. Picture: Getty

“We need to look at the review, take it at the face value and (chief executive) Brendon Gale and the rest of the team he’s got around him is going to do. Some hard conversations are probably going to have to be had, but that’s part and parcel of getting better at a footy club.”

Riewoldt said the board challenge that has unfolded this week is not on his radar, but he voiced his support for Gale and club president Peggy O’Neal.

“It’s a long way — a distant way away — from my thoughts and what I’m thinking at this time of year,” he said on Fox Footy.

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“We’d rather not be in the paper, but it’s at a level … I have nothing to do with it and I have no real thoughts on it, to be honest. That’s for Brendon and Peggy and whoever the club sees fit to do.

“I can say that the current board and Brendon and Peggy have put the club in a really good position off the field, and as players we need to back them up and perform better on-field.”