Matt Rowell playing to his strengths under guidance of Damien Hardwick and Shaun Grigg

Damien Hardwick’s message was heard loud and clear by Matt Rowell, who torched Richmond with 20 clearances on the weekend. See the edict and stats behind Rowell’s dominance.

Matt Rowell dominated Richmond. Picture: Getty Images

Has Damien Hardwick stumbled on the secret formula to unlocking Matt Rowell’s potential? Or was it hiding in plain sight all along?

Rowell’s historic performance against Richmond on Saturday shocked the footy world but hindsight says it should not have come as a surprise.

Before Christmas the Gold Coast midfielder revealed he had enlisted an off-season sprint coach to help get him up to speed with his fellow on-ballers and the early read was a faster Rowell would mean more uncontested footy.

After years of being critiqued by some as a one-trick pony, had the former No.1 pick finally succumbed to the scrutiny?

That read, it seems, was the wrong one.

Matt Rowell played an outstanding Opening Round. Picture: Getty Images

Somewhat lost in his ridiculous 20 clearances against the Tigers – the second-most in AFL history – was a familiar stat line: 26 of his 33 disposals were contested.

Last season, only North Melbourne’s Hugh Greenwood (65 per cent) had a higher contested possession ratio among midfielders than Rowell (64 per cent).

It appears Rowell is sticking to what he does best.

He declared as such in pre-season, revealing Hardwick had given the Suns playing group a crystal clear edict: play to your strengths.

“For me this year I’ll keep working on a bit of speed stuff,” Rowell said.

“And then for me it’s just nailing my strengths this year which means my contest work – stoppage and winning the ball.

“I’ll look to join in a bit more on that offensive side but I’ll still make sure my strength is in the contest and around stoppage. I’ll make that my one-wood, so I’ll always have that.

“(Hardwick) has been super clear with what he wants. His big thing is he wants us to use our strengths that we have.”

But what of the extra offensive output?

Rowell might not have hit the scoreboard on Saturday, but he finished the match with a game-high nine score involvements.

What became evident in pre-season and crystallised against the Tigers was an offensive edge to his clearance work. The Suns sliced through Richmond’s stoppage setups with Rowell feeding forward to the likes of Touk Miller, Noah Anderson and Sam Flanders who put the polish on the inside 50 entries.

With Hardwick and midfield coach Shaun Grigg giving Rowell a licence to be the pure inside midfielder he always dreamt of, the Suns suddenly have an on-ball brigade that can make maximum use of 22-year-old’s scary skill set.

“Dimma has come in and he’s been huge on our strengths,” Anderson said on Saturday.

“And obviously that’s his (Rowell’s) strength: contested footy (and) his work around the contest.

Rowell winning the hard ball. Picture: Getty Images

“If he gives us that then me, Touky and Sammy can make up for some of the uncontested ball.”

Rowell was famously at the centre of Brownlow speculation in his 2020 debut season after a string of best-on-ground performances had some wondering whether he could become the youngest winner since the 1930s, before a shoulder injury against Geelong in Round 5 cruelled his incredible run of form.

That cautionary tale did little to quell the enthusiasm of punters, who again swarmed to back the Suns midfielder after his day out against the Tigers.

“Eagle-eyed punters were quick to jump on Rowell during his eye-catching performance on Saturday,” TAB spokesman Nick Smart said.

“He was $51 pre-game and by the final siren he’d been backed into $41 before again being slashed to $17 as the money kept rolling in.

“On Monday alone, TAB took more on Rowell to win the Brownlow than any other player in the AFL.”

As Brisbane skipper Lachie Neale proved last year, winning clearances under the nose of the umpire is a fantastic way to write yourself into the voting.

Last season Rowell was second to Neale for total clearances.

He could not have made a better start to 2024.

Originally published as Matt Rowell playing to his strengths under guidance of Damien Hardwick and Shaun Grigg