RICHO’S TOP 10: Tasmanian election will give voters the chance to save the Devils by supporting the stadium

1 With Tasmanians heading back to the polls, the very livelihood of the Devils is at stake, and I, like many Tasmanians, am very worried.

The fall of the Rockliff government means the election will be a referendum on the Hobart Stadium and will give Tasmanians the opportunity to save the Devils by voting for the party that will build it. Eddie McGuire told The Nightly the AFL will find another taker for the 19th licence, and I agree — those criticising the plans to build the stadium are being short-sighted. The stadium is not just about the AFL; it will become a major drawcard for the State, with big-name acts performing there and other sports like basketball and cricket using it too. Most other Australian capitals have upgraded or built new stadiums in the last 10 years, and Tasmania will be left behind if it does not. It would be a major mistake for Tasmania to lose out on an AFL team after waiting so long.

2 I don’t want to be an old fuddy-duddy, but I’m going to have a whinge.

The music after a goal is fine at the Gabba — I get that the crowd loves it. Charlie Cameron’s choice of Country Roads is everyone’s favourite. But can the music please stop as soon as the ball is back in play? It lingered far too long last Thursday night. Please and thank you.

3 The Hawks are in a flat spot, having now lost three in a row.

It doesn’t get any easier tonight, facing a freshly rested Western Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium, while the Hawks are coming off a six-day break. The job is even harder without injured skipper James Sicily and crook star Nick Watson. It’s the right call on Sicily — he’s obviously been sore for a while, and his form was suffering. Get him right and hopefully back within a few weeks to launch into the back end of the season — that will serve Hawthorn well. Sam Mitchell has stated the Hawks are a long way off after being over-hyped earlier this season. Jack Ginnivan said after the game that they’d be bringing their mouth guards to training, and there was plenty of vision of the players going at it during the week. This was also said after the Gold Coast loss last year that put them at 0–5. We know what happened after that. For history to repeat, they need to get their tackle numbers up and intensity back. Over the last two weeks, they’ve had 36 and 38 tackles against Brisbane and Collingwood. Get that number between 60–70 tonight and they’ll be in the fight to the end.

4 I said it last year and I’ll say it again: the month-long bye rounds are killing the game.

Last weekend we had no games in Melbourne, so I have a solution — one bye round for the whole competition in late June. It could be the perfect opportunity to start the AFLW season or even showcase the under-18 championships so fans get a good look at who their clubs should draft. I’m open to suggestions, so comment online.

5 Collingwood are without doubt now very short-priced favourites for the flag.

Heading into the King’s Birthday clash on Monday, it’s going to take a phenomenal effort for Melbourne to beat them. The most experienced team in the competition has veterans in career-best form. Jamie Elliott is in sublime form with four bags of five goals in his last six outings. It’s great to see after watching him suffer through so many injuries over his career. Players that were down last year are back to their best — Isaac Quaynor is the man I’m talking about here. He is intercepting strongly and playing with confidence. New players like Ned Long are thriving. The ball movement and skills of this team are as good as you’ll see. We may only be halfway through the season, but I think it’s a reasonably safe bet they’ll be there on the last Saturday in September. The other great thing about Monday is the Big Freeze. It’s the 11th edition this year. I love this year’s theme of dressing up the sliders as iconic Australians. I have a couple of suggestions: Angus Young, Bob Hawke, Don Bradman, Cathy Freeman and Ron Barassi. What a job Australian of the Year Neale Daniher continues to do in his quest to find a cure for MND. Don’t forget to support it by buying a beanie. If I were going down again, I’d go as David Boon.

6 Heading into round 13, I’ll update my predictions.

The premiership is Collingwood’s to lose. The Brownlow is Nick Daicos’ — with 19 to 20 potential three-vote games, surely he gets half of those. That could be enough. The coach of the year is Craig McRae, and I’m sticking with Nate Caddy as the Rising Star winner. He’s playing great footy in a tough position as a 19-year-old.

7 There are some players who don’t get the recognition they deserve.

Brisbane’s Hugh McCluggage is one of them. This man has never been an All-Australian, but that will change in 2025. He is a certainty at this stage of the season. Brisbane wouldn’t have won without him last Thursday against Essendon. He doesn’t get as many possessions as some elite midfielders — he’s not interested in junk disposals. But he causes maximum damage when he does have the ball. A forward-half midfielder who is third in the competition for score involvements. He is a modest star.

8 Something has happened with the MRO and the tribunal recently.

What is it? Common-sense decisions. If Lloyd Meek had been rubbed out for a genuine attempt to spoil the ball last Friday, the game would be in big trouble. It was slightly late and rightly deserved the 50-metre free kick — but that’s all. Well played, MRO. Also, the decision to overturn Alex Pearce’s suspension was common sense at the tribunal. Hopefully, this is a permanent shift.

9 There are a lot of stats in footy — way too many, in my opinion.

But if you want to win an AFL game in 2025, you need midfielders who can win the footy and go somewhere with it. Where is the most damaging place they can win it? Probably at centre bounce, then taking the ball upfield quickly. Bailey Smith and Max Holmes are transforming the Geelong team with how they do this. I think this makes them the strongest challengers to Collingwood.

10 The game of the round is tomorrow night at Adelaide Oval.

The Crows face the Lions in a two-versus-three match, and the Crows are playing the better footy at the moment. They may be a game and a half behind the Lions, but I think they’re more consistent. Matty Nicks would be thrilled with the wide spread of strong performers — they had 14 goal scorers against Sydney on Saturday. That is off the chart. How do you defend that spread? The Lions know what they’re doing — it’s a marathon, but they’re clearly sprinting when required. In the last month, they’ve been average against the Bombers, North, and Melbourne, but they took six points out of those games. They looked impressive against the Hawks at the ‘G, but the Hawks have been poor. If they beat an in-form Crows at home, it will be a big flex from the reigning premier.