Former Richmond captain Wayne Campbell has urged Tom Lynch to continue playing with an intimidating physical presence.
The key forward has come under scrutiny on multiple occasions this season for incidents that could have been avoided, the latest being when he knelt on Dougal Howard in last week’s Semi Final win over St Kilda.
Lynch has been the subject of criticism from most non-Richmond corners throughout the season but Campbell has backed him in, saying Tigers fans would be keen to pay any fines received for his actions as long as he keeps contributing to wins.
“I must admit I didn’t watch the game on Friday night because I had to do something else but I had a couple of mates text me about Tom Lynch and that he’s done this,” he said on SEN’s Bob and Andy.
“I woke up the next day and watched it and I was like, ‘Are you serious?’.
“I understand that there’s been a couple of other bits and pieces that he’s done during the year.
“I’ll put it this way as a Richmond supporter, if Tom Lynch plays the way he did last Friday this Friday, and he does what he did on the field and he does that as well, I’ll pay his fine.
“I could not care less as a Richmond supporter.
“That’s what the game’s about. It’s about passion and therefore your morals might get put to one side. That’s what I see when I look at Richmond. Just keep doing it son.
“If you’re going to keep intimidating like he does and like he did at the contest…”
Bob Murphy put forward his opinion on the incident, suggesting that something of this nature is not necessarily physically intimidating.
“I don’t think you can lump in the dropping the knee (stuff),” he said.
“It wasn’t that significant, it was barely a fine, but there was something about it that’s just a bit like, 'Really? Why?’
“I don’t think you lump that in with, ‘Oh, this is part of his physical intimidation’. It just looked petty.”
Campbell replied: "I do."
“Because the opposite is he would help his mate (Howard) off the ground. Now you would say it’s a middle ground, don’t help him up and don’t drop your knee into him.
“But I reckon they’re coached to be on the edge. Is that on the edge and is that going a bit far? Yes it is, because he got fined. He’s gone over the edge.
“If he misses a game, well we as Richmond supporters and Damien Hardwick are going, ‘Don’t do that’. He ain’t missing a game and that’s why us Richmond supporters will hand the hat around.”
Murphy added: “I don’t think it does intimidate."
“I don’t think it actually does anything for the Tigers."
The Tigers will take their edgy game style to the Adelaide Oval on Friday night when they take on Port Adelaide in the Preliminary Final.