Coach Damien Hardwick compared his team's record of two wins and five losses after seven rounds to being three or four goals down at quarter-time in a game.
It puts a team behind the eight ball but by no means out of the race.
"You've just got to chip away, chip away, chip away," Hardwick said. "We've just got to get our head above water."
Five talking points: Geelong v Richmond
Hardwick, along with hordes of Tigers supporters, will hope the season's result does not mirror that of Sunday’s game, when they ran down a 20-point deficit at quarter-time to finish five points short of Geelong at the final siren.
"It's an even season," Hardwick said.
There is reason for hope as Richmond showed promising signs, attacking the game and running the ball in waves.
Hardwick said the return of Brett Deledio and Alex Rance was important but there was still work to be done to ensure the turnaround continued beyond next week's bye.
"Our players knew what we wanted. You see with the addition of Deledio and Rance it makes an automatic change to the way we play although nothing has changed from a philosophical point of view," Hardwick said.
"Whether it's mindset or whether it's personnel, that's how we want to play. [It's] one thing we can take out of the game."
However he knew that missing out on the four points up for grabs might prove critical.
"[We] commend the effort, but the result is certainly unacceptable," Hardwick said.
He lamented the critical errors that gave Geelong goalscoring opportunities and paid credit to the ability of the Cats to take those chances.
Hardwick described Geelong forward Jordan Murdoch's brilliant last quarter goal as "a cracking goal", admitted Cats' skipper Joel Selwood was able to rise to the occasion in the final quarter with a stoppage goal despite being well held most of the afternoon, and that defender Harry Taylor's effort to take five contested marks in the wet conditions was extraordinary.
At times, Richmond could not ice the clock by tipping the ball out of bounds when under pressure in defence or punch it through for a behind when it was on the goal line.
Hardwick noted Matt McDonough's fumble that allowed Murdoch to goal in the second quarter, but said the 20-year-old would learn from it and go on to become a good player.
"Against good sides you have to make the most of your opportunities and if you give the ball back they will hurt you," Hardwick said.
In the end, the gap Geelong opened up on Richmond in the first half hour of football became too much for the Tigers to overhaul.
"It's disappointing but if you give a side a five-goal-to-love head start ... against a good side like Geelong you are always going to be chasing your tail," Hardwick said.
"To give the guys some credit, they fought back."
Hardwick, along with hordes of Tigers supporters, will hope the season's result does not mirror that of Sunday’s game, when they ran down a 20-point deficit at quarter-time to finish five points short of Geelong at the final siren.
"It's an even season," Hardwick said.
There is reason for hope as Richmond showed promising signs, attacking the game and running the ball in waves.
Hardwick said the return of Brett Deledio and Alex Rance was important but there was still work to be done to ensure the turnaround continued beyond next week's bye.
"Our players knew what we wanted. You see with the addition of Deledio and Rance it makes an automatic change to the way we play although nothing has changed from a philosophical point of view," Hardwick said.
"Whether it's mindset or whether it's personnel, that's how we want to play. [It's] one thing we can take out of the game."
However he knew that missing out on the four points up for grabs might prove critical.
"[We] commend the effort, but the result is certainly unacceptable," Hardwick said.
He lamented the critical errors that gave Geelong goalscoring opportunities and paid credit to the ability of the Cats to take those chances.
Hardwick described Geelong forward Jordan Murdoch's brilliant last quarter goal as "a cracking goal", admitted Cats' skipper Joel Selwood was able to rise to the occasion in the final quarter with a stoppage goal despite being well held most of the afternoon, and that defender Harry Taylor's effort to take five contested marks in the wet conditions was extraordinary.
At times, Richmond could not ice the clock by tipping the ball out of bounds when under pressure in defence or punch it through for a behind when it was on the goal line.
Hardwick noted Matt McDonough's fumble that allowed Murdoch to goal in the second quarter, but said the 20-year-old would learn from it and go on to become a good player.
"Against good sides you have to make the most of your opportunities and if you give the ball back they will hurt you," Hardwick said.
In the end, the gap Geelong opened up on Richmond in the first half hour of football became too much for the Tigers to overhaul.
"It's disappointing but if you give a side a five-goal-to-love head start ... against a good side like Geelong you are always going to be chasing your tail," Hardwick said.
"To give the guys some credit, they fought back."
