Richmond and Fremantle have played out the first AFL draw of the season and honestly, the Tigers again tested the hearts of their supporters at Marvel Stadium on Friday night.
“Oh my god,” Ryan Daniels remarked during Monday’s chat with Clairsy & Lisa. “It was so nuts.”
Rhino mused that in a draw situation, it would almost be great if the AFL would allow something like a ‘golden goal’, or sudden death.
“Whoever scores the first win, imagine how hectic that would be?” he said.
Young Tigers forward Noah Cumberland marked just outside 50m, but played on just as the siren sounded as the umpired signalled the end of the game…
The Tigers and Dockers played out the first draw of the 2022 Toyota AFL Premiership Season in a frantic finish at Marvel Stadium 🍿
Watch the thrilling Last Two Minutes of #AFLTigersFreo now, thanks to Kennedy. pic.twitter.com/aGZDlCtmkN
— AFL (@AFL) July 22, 2022
Richmond had many chances to win the game but Cumberland only needed to bomb the ball through for a point to secure a memorable win after Marlion Pickett hit him on the chest.
The Tigers led at every break, including by eight points at three-quarter-time, but the scores ended tied at 7.10 (52) apiece.
It was just the second draw in Fremantle’s 27-year history, adding to the one against the Sydney Swans in 2013.
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Tigers swingman Noah Balta also had a set-shot in the dying stages but took too long and was called to play-on by the umpire and had his kick smothered.
It is another blow to the Tigers’ top-eight hopes, and they could drop to as low as 10th by the end of the round.
In a dirty night for the Dockers, superstar captain Nat Fyfe was subbed off early in the third quarter with a suspected hamstring injury.
Fyfe kicked an important goal during the second quarter and looked set to stamp his mark on the match before suffering the injury setback.
The dual Brownlow medallist missed the first 12 games of the season following numerous issues with his body since July last year.
“(Fyfe’s) a pro, he had a smile on his face and got around his teammates so we’ll get it scanned,” Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir said.
“This is a road-bump, the way I see this, because he’s got over his big injuries and sometimes when you’re trying to come back and trying to be committed, you can have little setbacks.”
A defensively-minded Richmond looked to have found a way to win in a low-scoring scrap, but the Dockers booted two goals to one in the final quarter.
Maurice Rioli Jnr came into the game midway through the final term after Ben Miller was subbed out with a full-body cramp, laying a big tackle to have an impact.
Fremantle’s top-four aspirations took a hit and Collingwood will push the Dockers down to fifth if they defeat Essendon on Sunday.
Fremantle are back on the Friday night stage when they host reigning premiers Melbourne at Optus Stadium.
