Carlton is in sixth place on the AFL ladder and have a better percentage than the sides below them.
However, with Melbourne and North Melbourne hovering just outside the eight, the Blues are by no means assured of September action.
They face a tough road home, with Richmond, Geelong and Fremantle - at Subiaco - to come, so this week is a vital game.
Round one 2008 was the last time the Tigers beat their bitter rival and the Blues will take heart from the recent record between the sides.
Richmond captain Chris Newman said the side had not forgotten those performances.
"They've put out some really good performances the last couple of times, and we've been really disappointing," he said at St Kilda beach on Tuesday morning.
"It's another opportunity to get one back on them, and show them how far we've come from the start of the season.
"It's a nice opportunity to play a rival team that draws a really big crowd and a big stage, so I think it’s an exciting time."
While the second game of each of those seasons has been far closer, Newman was quick to point out the differences from a week ago, when Carlton surged home over the Bombers like a tidal wave, kicking 10 goals to one, while the Tigers were outscored six goals to two when the match was on the line.
“I think it’s going to be a huge challenge for the group - last week Carlton absolutely annihilated Essendon late in the game, and we fell away, so it’s obviously a huge area of improvement that we’ve got to show this week.”
Newman also said that there was plenty more to be gained before the season ended, underlining Richmond's aim of winning its remaining matches.
“There’s still a huge amount of respect and belief to be got out of the last three weeks - there’s obviously still 12 points to be had, too,” he said.
“We’ve got a hell of a lot of work to do with a whole range of areas, so for the supporters’ sake, to be going out there and giving ourselves every possible chance to win the game, I think it’s really important.
“I think putting four quarters together throughout the year has been a bit of a challenge for a young group, but I think that we’re making steady progress.”
