The Tigers coach was pleased with the performance of his young side for three quarters, but a seven-goal-to-nil third term effectively ended any chance of the Tigers breaking their duck for season 2010.
“For three quarters we were okay, but in that third quarter we let ourselves down badly,” he said.
“If you take the third quarter out of the game, we lose by 11-points.”
“The thing we have to get better at - and it goes with an young inexperienced side - is that when that does happen you need to be able to stop the run on and that is something we need to address.”
Hardwick was quick to focus on the positives of the performance with the Richmond coach singling out the performance of defender Kelvin Moore, who was sensational across half-back.
“He was outstanding - it was the best game I’ve seen him play in my short time here,” he said.
“I thought he competed really hard and put his body on the line a number of times".
But with the Tigers line-up featuring 10 players who had played less than 20 games, Hardwick also saw reason for optimism especially after the performances of his debutants - Matt Dea, Troy Taylor and David Astbury.
The Tiger coach believes they have uncovered a gem in Astbury, with the key position forward kicking two goals in the first quarter and finishing with three for the match.
“I thought he was very good for a first year key position player,” he said.
“His leadership, his ability to demand the ball and tell other players where and when to go was outstanding.”
Hardwick laid down the challenge for the three first-gamers to back up their performance next weekend as the Tigers travel west to take on the high-flying Dockers next Sunday.
“We have some work to do with those boys - they have to build on those games. But from a Richmond football club point-of-view we are very happy with their performances today,” he said.
