RICHMOND big man Shaun Hampson says he's looking forward to putting a challenging year behind him during his second season at Punt Road in 2015.
The Tiger ruckman was rocked by his father Tom's passing after a six-year battle with prostate cancer early last season, just weeks before Hampson’s partner Megan Gale gave birth to their first son, River.
Speaking on Friday to promote the Movember campaign in support of men's health issues, Hampson admitted his father's death might have affected his form after he crossed from Carlton.
"I really didn't want it to. It may have. My dad passing away and then my son being born within a month…it was a pretty busy period," he said.
"But I really tried not to let it affect my footy as much as I could. Next year's a new year and hopefully it's a nice smooth one."
Hampson played 11 games last season and didn't return to the side after being dropped to the VFL after round 14.
The 201cm big man couldn't force his way back in as Richmond launched a stunning nine-game winning streak to clinch an unlikely finals berth.
Although he fell down the ruck/forward pecking order behind Ivan Maric, Ty Vickery and emerging key forward Ben Griffiths late in the year, Hampson is confident a solid pre-season will put him back in the frame for a senior spot.
"It all levels out in pre-season and everybody's equal. (I need to) work hard, fix a couple of things in my game and hopefully crack back into the side," Hampson said.
"I think fitness is a big one. It's never been a strong point of mine, so I'm going to work hard on it in this pre-season and continue working on marking and goalkicking.
"It's stuff I've had to work on my whole career, but I'll really give it even more this year.
"We've got pretty good depth for that ruckman/forward role which is only going to help the team and it's going to push all of us to try and outdo the others."
Although Richmond's winning run was brutally snuffed out by Port Adelaide in an elimination final, Hampson believes the club is in good shape to climb the ladder in 2015.
The Tigers didn't pick up during the NAB AFL Trade Period, with a late bid for Melbourne's former co-captain Jack Trengove falling through.
"I think our list is definitely good enough," said Hampson, who has played 74 games since making his debut in 2007.
"If we have a good draft, I think we've definitely got the list to make finals and have a good season."
The Tigers' first-to-fourth year players begin pre-season training on November 10, followed by the rest of the squad on the 24th.
In the meantime, Hampson has encouraged about 25 teammates to join his bid to raise as much money as possible for the Movember campaign in support of mental health, prostate and testicular cancer.
"It's great. I've just had one year at the Tigers now – it's coming into my second – and the boys from the start have been great. When I threw the email out and said I'd love a few boys to join, the response was amazing," he said.
"So it's good. It makes you feel even more a part of the team."
