Damien Hardwick has explained why Richmond has offered Jordan Gallucci the chance to train with the club.
The former first-round draft pick was delisted by Adelaide last year and is now spending some time with the Tigers as he strives to make the most of the lifeline.
Hardwick has revealed that the Tigers were keen on Gallucci in his draft year of 2016 but were unable to land him as the Crows pounced at pick 15.
The three-time premiership coach outlined the specific reasons why the small forward/midfielder has received an opportunity at Punt Road.
“He’s just a player that sort of suits the way we play,” Hardwick said on SEN Breakfast.
“Our (recruiting) guys really liked him in his draft year. We were hoping he was available but he went before our pick (which was used on Shai Bolton).
“He sort of plays like a Richmond player so that’s something we feel we can get. There’s no guarantees at the moment. He’s coming off a significant injury in an achilles rupture.
“He’s fit in well. We had a camp on the weekend up in Bright and he slotted in seamlessly and seems to have fit in with the group very well.
“We’ll see how he goes. He’ll have the opportunity to play in a number of games coming up.”
As Gallucci gets his chance, some players in recent times did not feel they were afforded the opportunity they perhaps deserved at Richmond.
Dan Butler left for St Kilda in the 2019 trade period, Jack Higgins followed him to Moorabbin late last year and Oleg Markov departed Tigerland to link up with Brandon Ellis at the Gold Coast Suns.
Hardwick insists it is in the nature of the club to allow these types of players to follow up when they are presented with such hopes of playing more regularly.
“Jack and Oleg Markov are two guys that have been around our footy club for a period of time,” he added.
“Both, to be honest, can play the game. They’re both good players and could quite easily play consistent AFL footy in our side, but the fact of the matter is both those guys wanted more opportunity.
“We’ve probably always been of the philosophy that we’ll never stand in a player’s way if he wants to go for greater opportunity. Those two players, to a degree, did. There were some (salary) cap implications as well that we had to be aware of.
“It’s very much like Dan Butler the year before. We couldn’t be happier for Dan the way he played the game. He should have been All-Australian in my opinion.
“What we do know is that we’ve certainly got the cattle and the talent to replace those players that have left and that’s also of benefit to us. Another player will get the opportunity to fulfil the role those players have left.
“We wish them all the best but we’re very confident with the playing list we have that we can move forward pretty quickly.”