Round 22 match preview: Melbourne v Richmond

Match details
Sunday 21 August, MCG, 4.40 pm (local time)

Teams
Melbourne
B: Colin Garland, James Frawley, Clint Bartram
HB: Aaron Davey, Jared Rivers, Joel Macdonald
C: Sam Blease, Brent Moloney, Tom Scully
HF: Jack Trengove, Stef Martin, Jeremy Howe
F: Ricky Petterd, Jack Watts, Brad Green
FOLL: Mark Jamar, Colin Sylvia, Nathan Jones
I/C: Jamie Bennell, Cale Morton, Jordie McKenzie, Liam Jurrah,
EMG: Lynden Dunn, Neville Jetta, Daniel Nicholson
IN: Brad Green, Liam Jurrah, Jamie Bennell
OUT: Luke Tapscott (soreness), Lynden Dunn, Daniel Nicholson

Richmond
B: Bachar Houli, Alex Rance, Will Thursfield
HB: Brett Deledio, Jayden Post, Matt Dea
C: Trent Cotchin, Dustin Martin, Shaun Grigg
HF: Daniel Jackson, Tyrone Vickery, Shane Edwards
F: Robin Nahas, Jack Riewoldt, Jake King
FOLL: Angus Graham, Shane Tuck, Nathan Foley
I/C: Mitch Morton, Mitchell Farmer, Jeromey Webberley, Brad Miller
EMG: Matthew White, Jamie O'Reilly, Ben Nason
IN: Jeromey Webberley
OUT: Jake Batchelor (shoulder)

Television
Fox Sports  

Radio times
1116SEN 1600-2000, ABC774 1600-2000, ABC891 1800-1930, 6PR 1430-1800, ABC720 1400-1800, NIRS 1400-1800, NIRS 1600-2000, ABC936 1600-2000, ABC105.7 1530-1930, NIRS 1530-1930, NIRS 1600-2000, CROC 1630-2000

Form
Melbourne: D, L, W, W, Bye, L, W, L, L, L, W, L, W, W, L, Bye, W, L, L, L, L
Richmond: L, D, L, L, W, W, W, L, W, L, Bye, L, W, L, L, L, L, L, Bye, L, W

Ladder position
Melbourne: 11th
Richmond: 13th

Head-to-head
Played: 180
Melbourne: 78 wins
Richmond: 99 wins
Drawn: 2

At this ground:
Played: 125
Melbourne: 59 wins
Richmond: 65 wins
Drawn: 1

Last time they met
Round 14, 2011: Melbourne 17.16 (118) d Richmond 13.13 (91) at the MCG

Memorable match
Grand Final: Melbourne 15.17 (107) d Richmond 10.8 (68) at MCG
One of Melbourne’s hat-trick of premiership wins from 1939, 1940 and 1941 came against Richmond in 1940, with a 39-point win on a wet, miserable day at the MCG. Jack Dyer had a tough day, and Harold Ball, Sid Anderson and Ron Barassi Senior, lost in WWII, were all playing their last game ever for Melbourne. Yet another, Keith ‘Bluey’ Truscott, would return for his last ever game when on leave in 1942 - at Punt Road, against Richmond.

Recent streak
Melbourne has won its past three matches against Richmond.

Injury list
Melbourne:
Brad Green (soreness) - test, Jack Grimes (foot) - season, Jordan Gysberts (wrist) - season, Liam Jurrah (hip) - test, Addam Maric (ill) - test, Michael Newton (foot) - 1 week, Jake Spencer (knee) - season, James Struass (leg) - season

Richmond  
David Astbury (dislocated patella) - season, Jake Batchelor (shoulder) -test, Daniel Connors (leg) - 2-3 weeks, Tom Derickx (fractured ankle) -season, Dylan Grimes (hamstring) - TBA, Brad Helbig (ankle) - season,  Kelvin Moore (hip) - season, Chris Newman (knee) - 1-2 weeks

Summary
Melbourne’s tough run continued last round, when it went down to West Coast Eagles by 48 points at Etihad Stadium. It was the red and blue’s fourth loss in a row, after it dropped matches against four of the top five teams in the competition: Hawthorn (third on the ladder), Geelong (second), Carlton (fourth) and West Coast (fifth). Realistically, the Demons were always going to be up against it, but this period proved to be a frustrating period. On top of some significant losses, the departure of coach Dean Bailey added to a difficult period for the club. Club great Todd Viney has since stepped up as interim coach and has demanded the players bring an “anywhere, anytime, any conditions” attitude. Aside from two poor second terms against Carlton and West Coast respectively, the Viney-led Demons have shown some encouraging and positive signs. Despite the hurdles, Melbourne still has a glimmer of hope of making the final eight. With three winnable matches coming up - although Richmond on Sunday won’t be easy after its fine effort over Sydney Swans last round - Melbourne still has plenty to play for in 2011.
 
Players to watch
Melbourne: James Frawley
Frawley played one of his best matches for the season last round, accumulating a career-best 28 disposals. He also had 10 rebounds and gave his all out of defence. Although his year started off on a frustrating note - he missed the second half of the pre-season due to a pectoral injury - he form last week was akin to his 2010 All-Australian season.  

Richmond: Bachar Houli
The former Bomber achieved 32 disposals against Sydney last round - a personal-high - and was one of his side’s most influential in the win. Houli has been a fine player in his first season for the Tigers this year, playing 19 of his 45 AFL matches in 2011.  

Match-up to watch
James Frawley v Jack Riewoldt
The two players have already had some good encounters and expect Frawley and the reigning Coleman Medallist to go at it again this round. Last time, Riewoldt kicked 1.3, while he booted two goals last week.

Most disposals in 2011
Melbourne: Nathan Jones (437)
Richmond: Brett Deledio (495)

Most marks in 2011
Melbourne: Jack Watts (109)
Richmond: Bachar Houli (116)

Most tackles in 2011
Melbourne: Brent Moloney (102)
Richmond: Nathan Foley (103)

Most goals in 2011
Melbourne: Liam Jurrah (34)
Richmond: Jack Riewoldt (56)

Foot in both camps
Les Abbott, Ken Albiston, Gerry Beare, Ross Brewer, Jack Bristow, Blair Campbell, Doug Chapman,  Cameron Clayton, Matt Connors, Daryl Cumming, Leo Dobrigh, Phil Egan, Simon Eishold, Percy Ellingsen, Frank Ellis, Jim Fitzpatrick, Laurie Fowler, Graham Gaunt, Andy Goodwin, Herbert Hill, Max Hislop, Ben Holland, John Howat, Frank Hughes Jnr, Len Incigneri, Les Irwin, Mick Maguire, Herbie Matthews, Craig McKellar, Vern Moore, Billy Nettlefold, Steven O’Dwyer, Michael Pickering, Howard Richardson, Haydn Robins, Leo Rush, Alex Salvado, Peter Schofield, Ben Sheppard, George St John, Troy Simmonds, Chris Sullivan, Scott Sutcliffe, Ken Webb, Graeme Wilkinson.

What Todd Viney says …
“It can happen really quickly and there are plenty of examples of teams that hit finals form in the last three or four weeks with a lot of momentum. We haven’t got the momentum at the moment, but it can start with this week and we’ll see where it goes from there.”

Key Melbourne question
Can Melbourne win its first match under Todd Viney and keep its slim finals hopes alive?