IT HASN'T taken long for Riley Collier-Dawkins to impress his Richmond teammates, with defender Nick Vlastuin heaping praise on the teenage draftee. 

As the Tigers near the end of their five-day training camp on the Gold Coast, Vlastuin said the No.20 pick from last year's NAB AFL Draft had turned heads with his training form.

When asked who he expected to make an impact following the departure of Reece Conca and depth players such as Anthony Miles and Corey Ellis, Vlastuin was definitive. 

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"I've been impressed with Riley Collier-Dawkins and 'Rossy' (No.42 draft pick Jack Ross)," he said.

"We had a little match-sim on Monday and Collier-Dawkins was probably best-on."

While its forward line was boosted significantly during the off-season with the addition of free-agent Tom Lynch, Richmond's defence remained rock solid. 

Led by Alex Rance, the Tigers have had essentially the same back seven for the past four years, although there's one slight change in 2019.

Following the departure of defensive coach Ben Rutten to Essendon, Justin Leppitsch has taken control of that part of the ground after two years working with the forwards. 

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"Justin Leppitsch focuses a lot more on players individually," Vlastuin said.

"He's good fun. He keeps telling us he was All Australian centre half-back and centre half-forward so maybe we can learn a bit off him." 

Following two knee surgeries since he last played for Gold Coast, Lynch was back doing laps and some straight-line running at Bond University on Thursday but is a little way off changing direction.