AFL 2024: Richmond coach Adem Yze says rough patch will help career

Richmond’s ball use was diabolical against Brisbane, but the Tigers’ coach says it will take time for his inexperienced side to right the ship.

Richmond coach Adem Yze says he has ‘amazing support’ through a horror start to his career at the Tigers. Picture: Albert Perez / Getty Images

Adem Yze says his coaching career will be better off in the long run for dealing with Richmond’s catastrophic 1-9 start to the season.

Yze called on his players to show “spirit and energy” in Saturday night’s home Dreamtime fixture against Essendon after a demoralising 119-point loss to Brisbane.

General admission tickets for the clash sold out on Thursday, but whether Richmond members fill their seats will be open to question after a pair of listless performances against the Bulldogs and Lions.

Yze, who has repeatedly defended his players’ effort and defensive pressure in post-game press conferences, said he was going through a patch all senior coaches experienced – only his had struck right at the start of his tenure.

Adem Yze says his coaching will be better for the daunting challenge of guiding Richmond through its injury-plagued start to the season. Picture: Dylan Burns / Getty Images

“I’ve got amazing support around me with (football boss) Tim Livingstone, (list boss) Blair Hartley and older (assistant) coaches,” Yze said on Friday.

“A lot of coaches go through this – I’m obviously copping it in the first 10 weeks.

“We’re dealing with a lot of things, not just the way we’re playing, we’re dealing with players and injury … hopefully (my coaching) will be better for it in the long run.”

After conceding more than 100 points to Brisbane via turnover, Yze said the Tigers had honed in on their ball movement and decision-making but would still be vulnerable to “teething problems” due to their inexperienced forward half.

“The Tiger Army, they follow through thick and thin, and that’s what we expect, but we expect to play better footy and put on a performance … no better opportunity than in front of a big crowd (to respond),” he said.

“On the weekend we gave the ball back. To give up 100 points on turnover just isn’t us, so we looked at that really honestly just for some clarity around our ball movement, decisions we were making with the ball and what we should be thinking.

Richmond co-vice-captain Liam Baker will return against Essendon in the Dreamtime game after a fortnight on the sidelines. Picture: Michael Willson / Getty Images

“We’ve worked really hard on it this week. There’ll still be some teething problems with that, with some younger players in the team, but we’ve just got to limit how many times we just give the ball back.”

Yze said Liam Baker and second-year forward Seth Campbell would be important inclusions against the Bombers, as he assured supporters they would hear from Dustin Martin either before or after his 300th game, which could come as early as the round 13 clash in Adelaide against the Crows, or more likely in an MCG home game against Hawthorn in round 14.

“I’m not sure he’s done much media, ever! But when it gets to his 300th game, it’s around performance, so whether he does it before the game or after the game, you’ll hear from him,” Yze said.

“We want to celebrate Dustin Martin for who he his … we want him to perform at his best, and obviously that can look after itself after the (300th) game.

“He’s helping the development of our younger players, he’s walking around with a smile on his face, and he’s really engaged.

“That’s all we can hope, and hopefully he gets some reward out on the field.”