Part of the resurgence of the 2008 premiers has been the return to form of a number of their previously misfiring stars.
Chief among these during the Hawks’ 47-point win over Adelaide at Launceston’s Aurora Stadium on Saturday was Cyril Rioli, the fleet-footed forward leaving scorch marks across the Tasmanian turf on his way to three goals and a genuine all-round performance.
“It was good to get back into a bit of form and kick a couple of goals and the team were up and about and we’re on a roll,” he said. “It was a good game today but we’ve still got a long way to go.”
On his way to 27 possessions for the afternoon, Rioli notched up nine tackles and 10 contested possessions, the defensive side of his game just as effective as his elusiveness at the clearances and creativeness around goal.
“We studied Adelaide pretty hard and we knew we had to hunt them and we stuck at it all game,” he said. “Getting up and helping the forwards and trying to spread the load and trying to help the boys.”
Having started the game in the centre square, Rioli moved through the midfield and forward during patches and enjoyed his roving commission, partly crediting this freedom with his return to form.
“It’s good to get up the ground,” he said. “I’ve been playing forward a bit and struggling a bit so it’s good to get up the ground and I had a lot of fun.
“I was sort of all over the place, on the wing and a little bit of midfield and rested up forward, you know, I was popping up everywhere.”
Rioli is hoping for a repeat performance when their side looks to consolidate its spot in the eight against old rivals Essendon at the MCG on Friday night.
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