Round 6, 1996 - Fitzroy vs Richmond

Richmond got back onto the winners list in a commanding way, defeating Fitzroy by 92 points at the Western Oval.

Fitzroy put up a decent fight for a half, before Richmond kicked 14 goals to 3 in the second half to romp home 23.16 (154) to 9.8 (62)

Darren Gaspar spoils against his Fitzroy opponent

It was a sorely needed win for the Tigers, who had got off to somewhat of an underwhelming start to season 1996 under new coach Robert Walls.

Richmond jumped out of the blocks with a five-goal to one opening term in what was becoming an all too familiar story for the struggling Lions.

To their credit though, they lifted their game and pushed Richmond in the second term, actually winning the quarter by a goal and after they kicked the first goal of the third term to go with it, the margin was back to just 14 points.

The rain came down in the third quarter, and, coincidence or not, this is when the Tigers were able to gain the ascendancy.

Following that Lions goal, Richmond booted five in a row and by the final change the game was all but over with the Tigers ahead by 50.

The Tigers seemingly had loose men everywhere over the ground as their running power started to really shine through.

The Tigers showed the hapless Lions no mercy in the final quarter, pouring on another nine goals to two to run away with the massive victory.

Wayne Campbell was one of the Tigers most damaging midfielders with 28 disposals and two goals, while his counterpart Paul Broderick was the most prolific ball winner on the ground with 39, 14 of which were in the opening term.

One of the oddities of the game was Matthew Richardson. While the stats sheet showcases a seven-goal, 10-mark performance, Fitzroy defender Brad Boud had actually done an outstanding job on him up until early in the third quarter.

But when Boyd left the game through injury, Richardson took full advantage and ran rings around the Lions.

Small forward Chris Naish was also in everything, and while his 11 disposals and two goals didn't look like much, every time he touched it he was generally in the chain for a Richmond goal.

The match was also the debut of an 18-year old Ross Funcke, who didn't get a whole lot of playing time after starting on the bench, but acquitted himself well enough to suggest there were more games in his future.

 Stats for the game courtesy of AFL Tables

A Fighting Fury player ratings - click here for explanation

Wayne Campbell	12
Matthew Richardson	10
Chris Naish	10
Brendon Gale	9
Paul Broderick	8
Duncan Kellaway	8
Mark Merenda	7
Paul Bulluss	7
Darren Gaspar	7
Nick Daffy	6
Chris Bond	5
Justin Charles	4
Matthew Rogers	4
Nathan Bower	2
Michael Gale	2
Scott Turner	2
Stephen Jurica	2
Ashley Prescott	1
Jason Torney	1
Ross Funcke	1
Jamie Tape	0