Richmond General Manager of Football Talent Dan Richardson says the Tigers have lowered their interest in Brisbane youngster Josh Schache.
The Lions re-signed the 20-year-old until the end of 2019 earlier this year, but that hasn’t stopped speculation surrounding his future. Lacking a fellow tall forward to assist Jack Riewoldt, Richmond have been linked to Schache throughout the season, but Richardson believes the club will approach the offseason with a different mindset.
“I don’t think so,” he said on SEN Breakfast, when asked if Schache would be a player the Tigers would potentially talk to.
“I think our focus this year will be predominantly to retain. We have two first round picks, and we have an opportunity, hopefully, with a father-son prospect in Patrick Naish.
“There are a few balls in the air there in terms of what we do. I’d imagine at this point, we are pretty comfortable retaining our picks in this year’s draft.”
Richmond hold picks 15 and 16 in the upcoming national draft, and it is expected Brisbane would demand at least one of those selections in any exchange involving Schache.
Richardson also confirmed reports this morning that the Tigers had shown interest in out of favour Bulldog Jake Stringer.
“We spoke to his [Stringer’s] management,” he said.
“You’re always looking at who’s available and whether or not they’re going to be the right option and fill a need on your list. We probably felt in the end that Jake’s not quite filling a specific need for us, albeit he is a very good player.
“We think with the likes of [Trent] Cotchin and Dusty [Dustin Martin] being able to play that midfield-forward role, and with a couple other young players coming through, we have that covered reasonably well.”