Richmond CEO Brendon Gale says there is an air of optimism at Punt Road ahead of the new AFL season.
The Tigers have entered a new era under Adem Yze following the departure of Damien Hardwick in May last year after a successful spell which delivered three premierships.
Yze has brought with him from Melbourne strong football knowledge, an innate technical understanding of the game and a freshness not seen at the club for some time.
Gale is excited about the new regime and what it can do to help the playing group achieve success in 2024 and beyond.
“It’s really positive and optimistic,” Gale said on SEN Mornings.
“With success over the recent years comes that level of expectation to back up year after year, and sometimes that has its own weight.
“With Damien finishing up last year, in what I thought upon reflection were fantastic circumstances, we just both walked away and were so thankful of each other and the contribution he made.
“But it’s a new broom. We’ve got Adem, new personnel, a new approach. I’ve known no different than Damien so a new coach is a big change.
“Clearly he (Yze) has missed out on a few opportunities previously and he’s (now) got his chance. He brings great experience of the game, great technical capability, but incredible enthusiasm and excitement.
“I think that really rubs off on everyone and through the whole place. We feel really good.”
When entering a new dawn its generally difficult to forecast what the future holds.
With that in mind, Gale was asked if it’s tricky to set expectations for Yze’s first season in charge.
“It is,” he replied.
What he does want to see, however, is a clear pathway forward set out by Yze and his coaching staff that the playing group understands.
“The frustrating thing at times last year were clearly we’ve played a very clear system of football that’s been understood by our players and they’ve been able to deliver that with great success,” Gale continued.
“Our fans understand the way we play and the way we should play. There were times last year when we were sort of unrecognisable, to be frank.
“We want to get back to playing a consistent, aggressive, exciting brand of footy, with aggressive ball movement in taking the game on.
“I think consistency and excitement is something we want to see this year.
“Where that takes us, who knows?”
The Richmond chief also provided an update on the fitness of star forward Tom Lynch and former co-captain Dylan Grimes.
Lynch continues to work his way back from the foot injury that derailed his 2023 season while Grimes has been nursing a calf niggle this pre-season.
“‘Lynchy’ is making good progress now,” Gale offered.
“When he joined us at the end of ‘18 for ‘19, it didn’t look like he was going to be available for the early rounds of ‘19 at all. But in the last week or two he just really progressed and played Round 1 against Carlton and had an impact.
“He’s coming on, he’s making really good progress, so we’ve got high hopes that Tommy will be available.
“‘Grimesy’ has had a few little niggles. He knows his body, he’s got great awareness and he’s putting a lot of effort into his preparation.
“He’s a warrior. He’ll be available, he’ll be good.”
The Tigers are preparing for their AFL Community Series fixture against Collingwood on February 27 before their Opening Round clash with Hardwick’s Gold Coast at Heritage Bank Stadium on March 9.