Tigers not satisfied, says Brett Deledio

RICHMOND star Brett Deledio says the Tigers could have claimed two or three more big scalps this season.

Brett Deledio

RICHMOND veteran Brett Deledio is as pleasantly surprised as the 50,000 Tiger members by the resurgence of the club this season.

“I had no idea how good this group could be, or will be,” Deledio said as the Tigers prepared for Saturday’s crunch match against struggling Fremantle.

“To be 5-5 at this stage, given our tough draw, I would have taken it,” he said of the current situation had he been given the option pre-season.

But he said expectations had lifted markedly since then. Deledio, 25, said the team had come a long way this season, and it could have been even better.

“We felt we could have won against Geelong and the West Coast, and apart from 10-15 minutes, against Collingwood ... the Essendon game was quite close as well.

"It's not the best we could hope for at all, we could be quite a few more wins.

“We were playing good footy and not getting the win doesn’t mean much. But we believed we were on the right path,” he said.

The Tigers lost to both Geelong and West Coast by 10 points, and to Collingwood by 19 points, but during the past fortnight have beaten flag fancies Hawthorn and St Kilda.

They now face Fremantle and Greater Western Sydney before a bye, and then play only Carlton, Essendon and Port Adelaide who are in finals contention in the final 10 rounds.

“We always expected our young boys to be developing, and they certainly are. An example is Ben Griffiths coming in to replace Dylan Grimes. He hasn’t missed a beat,” Deledio said.

Grimes has recovered from a hamstring ailment but will be rested until after the bye.

“We are going about our business and not getting caught up in the hype. It is exciting and our supporters are very loud.

“We are a tight-knit group, family orientated,” he said.

Deledio said the way the Tigers fought back after being headed by St Kilda during the eight-point win last Friday night was exciting and proof of the improvement of the group.

“The Tigers of old would have been blown out of the water and beaten by 30-40 points. To come back was a credit to our players.”

He said every team wanted to play finals and that the Tigers could not relax after two exciting wins.

“It showed at the weekend that if you are off that little bit you will get nutted. We know we must play really good footy to challenge the good sides.

“Winning is always great, but it can gloss over a few things. We know we must continue to improve.”

“We believe we have what it takes to match it with the good sides."