AFL Richmond v Carlton: Sam Lalor could be better overhead marker than Dustin Martin, says Matthew Richardson

Sam Lalor announced himself with one of the best AFL debuts in recent memory and one Tiger great is prepared to say there is one thing he does better than Dusty Martin.

The No.1 draft pick, who was immediately compared to Martin after the Tigers chose him for his big frame and hard-running style in the midfield, starred in Richmond’s miracle 13-point win over the Blues last night.

Lalor kicked two goals, had 22 touches and made five tackles as the Tiger cubs showed they could be force to be reckoned with in 2025.

Former Tiger forward and club legend Matthew Richardson said while he was not rushing to label the 18-year-old Dusty 2.0 there was an area of the game the 18-year-old was excelling where Martin did not.

“I’m always loathe to compare a once in generation superstar to a one game player, but I will say he’s got similar traits,” the columnist for The Nightly said.

“He’s very strong through his legs and he’s hard to tackle. I am prepared to say that I think he’s going to be a better overhead Mark than Dusty. He took a big overhead mark last night.

“As good as Dusty was one-on-one when he used his body, but jumping up overhead I reckon Lalor showed maybe his aerial ability might even be a bit better. But there is a long, long, long way to go.”

Lalor appeared composed throughout the match and moreso afterwards which impressed the 282-game Richardson.

“He’s modest, humble and he played like a guy that had already played 40 or 50 games,” he said.

“It’s going to be ups and downs. He’s not going to be able to do that every week. But some really good signs that just validates some of the stuff they’re trying to teach these young players. If you do the things that you’ve been training in games, you can win no matter how much more experienced your opposition is.”

The way the Tigers fought back after kicking just one goal in the first quarter had echoes of the three-peat Tigers team Martin starred in.

“Probably the gritty nature of it. It wasn’t great passages of play, it was just grunt, hard work and effort,” Richardson said.

“I thought they brought some great effort and intent and it wore Carlton down.

“They took their chances, and they needed to because they were well beaten inside 50. Luke Trainor and Lalor with ball in hand looked as poised as any Richmond player out there.”

The one blemish for the Tigers was Tom Lynch’s bump on Tom De Koning and while the Blues players did not undergo a concussion test the contact is likely to be viewed dimly by the Match Review Officer.

“I think there is extenuating circumstances certainly when you are pushed in, that certainly doesn’t help,” Richardson said.

“When you get pushed in the back like that you are out of control of your body. You don’t have full control of it. So unless you have been in that that situation, it’s hard to explain.”

And while he did not too much sympathy for the Tigers rivals Richardson said the Blues would need to ride out the “heat” that would now be on them after losing a game they were widely tipped to win easily.

“It’s going fuel the whole media cycle. Straightaway, it brings on a bit of extra focus onto your club,” Richardson said.

“But you look at Brisbane (last year) that’s a classic example, you’ve got 23 three weeks to get that right.

“They’ll be disappointed as their execution and skill errors probably let them down. They gave Richmond a lot of goals that could been avoided, so there are things they can fix up. The heat will be on them, and they know that. So, the next few weeks will be the story for them.”