Matthew Richardson (footballer)

Matthew Richardson
Personal information
Full name	Matthew Richardson
Nickname(s)	Richo
Date of birth	(1975-03-19) 19 March 1975
Place of birth	Devonport, Tasmania
Original team(s)	Devonport (TFL)
Draft	Father-Son Selection, 1992 Richmond
Height / weight	197 cm / 103 kg
Position(s)	Forward/ Wing
Club information
Current club	Richmond
Number	12
Career highlights
AFL AFL Rising Star Nominee (1993) All Australian (1996, 1999, 2008) Alex Jesaulenko Medal 1996 International Rules 1999 Tasmanian State of Origin Representative 1993 Dream Team Representative 2008 Third In 2008 Brownlow Medal [Polled 22 votes] AFL Life Membership 2009 Richmond Club Leading Goalkicker (1994, 1996, 1997, 1998 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008) Richmond Team Of The Century Richmond Life Membership 2002 Richmond Best And Fairest 2007 Other Tasmanian Team of the Century
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Matthew "Richo" Richardson (born 19 March 1975 in Devonport, Tasmania), is a retired Australian rules footballer and current media personality who represented Richmond in the Australian Football League (AFL). Richardson is widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of the modern era, known for his marking prowess, speed and work rate. Richardson was the club's key forward through the mid-1990s and the 2000s. He led the club's goalkicking for thirteen seasons, and was selected in the All-Australian Team three times - in 1996, 1999 and 2008.

Richardson's 800 career goals currently see him ranked second behind Jack Titus at Richmond, and eleventh on the all-time list of AFL/VFL goalkickers. He currently holds the record for the most goals kicked at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Richardson was one of the most popular players in the competition, this was shown when the crowd at the 2008 Brownlow Medal cheered every vote he got. Mark Robinson from the Herald Sun wrote "M. Richardson... I'm sure there wouldn't have been a more popular winner".

Career

Educated at St. Brendan-Shaw and Don Colleges in Devonport, Tasmania, Richardson was the fourth pick (a father-son selection) in the 1992 AFL Draft, and was recruited from Devonport, Tasmania. He is the son of former Richmond and South Melbourne player Alan "Bull" Richardson.

Combining a 196-centimetre frame with exceptional speed and athletic capacity for a large man, on his day he has been a dominant presence for the Tigers. He suffered a torn left ACL in Round 9, 1995 against Sydney at the SCG after he hypextended his left knee while landing as he was running out of bounds and crashed hard into the fence and missed the rest of the season after reconstructive surgery on his knee, including the Tigers' finals series. In 1996 he came back strongly, playing all 22 games and finished with 91 goals (49 behinds), earning All Australian selection for the first time. He sustained another knee injury in the pre-season of 2001, but recovered to play 22 games and kick 59 goals.

In 2004, a decision to step back involvement in the Tigers' "leadership group" (the small group of senior players who help lead the club on and off-field) and focus on additional strength training paid off, with a flurry of goals in the early part of the season including a career best 10 against the Western Bulldogs. His 10th goal in that game was a spectacular snap from 30 meters out on his left foot that sent the crowd into a frenzy. Richardson finished with a tally of 65 goals for the season. In 2005 he kicked 65 goals again, this time with much more consistency throughout the season.

In 2007, in a match against the Essendon Football Club, Richardson earned the widespread respect of the football community by playing the game with a fractured eye socket and broken nose sustained only a week before. He still managed to kick four goals, and what appeared to be a match-winning fifth until the umpire awarded a controversial free kick against him. In the same year, he won his first ever club best-and-fairest, beating young team-mate Nathan Foley by a single vote.

Richardson spent a large part of the 2008 season playing on the wing, rather than in the forward line, which allowed him to have a much larger part in the play than previously. Although he did not win the club best-and-fairest, he was selected on the bench in the All-Australian team and finished third in the Brownlow Medal.

In Round 6, 2009 against Sydney at the SCG, Richardson kicked his 800th career goal, becoming the eleventh player to reach the milestone in VFL/AFL history. Later in the same match, he partially tore his hamstring off the bone; he missed the remainder of the season with the injury, and announced his retirement after the season. He received a rousing send-off in Round 1, 2010, appearing before the match in Richmond's season opener against Carlton.

Richardson retired after 282 senior games for Richmond; he became an AFL life member after playing more than 300 total games, including representative and pre-season matches. His career tally of 800 goals was the eleventh-highest at the time of his retirement, and remains eleventh-highest as of April 2012. Richardson took a total of 2,270 marks during his AFL career, which was the second-highest of any player at the time of his retirement (since the statistic was recorded, starting in 1974).

Upon retiring at the end of the 2009 AFL Season and throughout the 2009 AFL Season (when Richo was not playing), Matthew was an AFL Expert Commentator for telecast matches and a Panelist on the review show 'One Week at a Time', all for Network Ten.

Since retiring, Richardson has become a boundary rider for the Seven Network's AFL coverage. In 2012, he is on the Friday and Saturday night commentary teams. He also appears on Seven News Melbourne Thursday evenings alongside Sandy Roberts to preview the weekend's AFL action

Statistics

Statistics are correct as of round 6, season 2009

Season	Team	No.	Games	Goals	Behinds	Kicks	Marks	Handballs	Disposals	Tackles	Hit Outs	Brownlow Votes
1993	Richmond	12	14	32	24	112	92	53	185	5	0	2
1994	Richmond	12	19	56	40	153	108	32	185	4	1	5
1995	Richmond	12	9	27	3	94	60	21	115	6	0	6
1996	Richmond	12	22	91	49	154	177	77	331	6	1	13
1997	Richmond	12	19	47	35	197	148	49	246	8	4	9
1998	Richmond	12	16	55	41	158	113	48	199	9	2	2
1999	Richmond	12	20	67	41	247	172	75	322	5	6	16
2000	Richmond	12	3	13	8	41	29	9	50	0	0	1
2001	Richmond	12	22	56	36	249	182	54	303	9	8	9
2002	Richmond	12	13	36	21	126	91	26	152	7	7	12
2003	Richmond	12	19	33	34	215	173	77	292	11	25	4
2004	Richmond	12	18	65	50	188	130	44	232	10	1	10
2005	Richmond	12	22	65	46	147	166	49	296	13	1	7
2006	Richmond	12	18	45	40	202	150	67	269	13	9	10
2007	Richmond	12	22	53	40	261	197	72	333	14	18	6
2008	Richmond	12	20	48	30	262	222	102	364	11	3	22
2009	Richmond	12	6	9	13	76	60	31	107	3	3	6
Totals			282	800	551	3058	2249	871	3929	132	88	140

Achievements & Honours

AFL

• AFL Rising Star Nominee (1993)
• All Australian (1996, 1999, 2008)
• Alex Jesaulenko Medal (1996)
• International Rules (1999)
• Tasmanian State of Origin Representative (1993)
• Dream Team Representative (2008)
• Third in 2008 Brownlow Medal [Polled 22 votes]
• AFL Life Membership 2009

Richmond

• Richmond Leading Goalkicker (1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)
• Richmond Team of the Century (Half-forward flank)
• Richmond Life Membership 2002
• Richmond Best and Fairest (2007)
• 100 Tiger Treasures "The Strong & the Bold" Nominee (2008)
• 100 Tiger Treasures "Brave Act of the Century" Nominee (2008)
• 100 Tiger Treasures "Mark of the Century" Nominee (2008)

Other

• Tasmanian Team of the Century (Interchange Bench)

Personal life

His sister, Samantha, is married to retired Hawthorn, Bulldogs and Kangaroos footballer Jade Rawlings, who also coached Richardson when he was the caretaker coach for Richmond for the second half of the 2009 season, albeit while Richardson was out injured.

External links

• Matthew Richardson's profile on the official website of the Richmond Football Club
• Matthew Richardson's playing statistics from AFL Tables
• Feature story from 2005 on Matthew Richardson at the Yellow and Black Supporters Forum and Website

Further reading

Richardson, Matthew; Flanagan, Martin (2010). Richo. Random House Australia. ISBN 978-1-74166-972-5