Port Adelaide premiership coach Mark Williams believes Richmond should tap into the Western Bulldogs failings as a key part of its premiership defence.
After the Dogs became the first team since Hawthorn in 2009 to miss finals a year after claiming the premiership, locating the pitfalls, potential issues and shaping a steely mindset to repeat the dose will be a huge challenge for the Tigers.
Richmond’s premiership side became the first in the modern era to win a flag without a player aged over 30.
“You’d like to think they could try and find out what they can and learn from what happened at the Dogs this year,” Williams told SEN Afternoons.
“I’m not sure how much the Dogs would be willing to tell but it’s a good starting point for the Tigers because very few younger sides over the years, including Hawthorn back in 2009, have been able to back up a premiership.
“Picking through the failings of others can be a great learning tool.”
The Bulldogs won 11 games and finished 11th in 2017.
Williams said he had not spoken to Hardwick since being sacked from Richmond at the end of 2016.
“I haven’t spoken to him and he knows how disappointed I was,” he said.
“I sent a text to wish him luck for finals and he responded to that but that’s the only correspondence we’ve had.”
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