Richmond will enter Sunday’s Round 4 match against Melbourne at the MCG with its most inexperienced line-up since the introduction of a fourth interchange player by the AFL, in 1998, which boosted the total number of players per team to 22.

The Tigers have a combined total of 965 games experience, at an average of 43.9 per player. 

Only three members of the Tiger side selected for Sunday’s clash with the Demons have played more than 100 games - Troy Simmonds (193), Shane Tuck (111) and Brett Deledio (109). 

The line-up includes three debutants - David Astbury, Matt Dea and Troy Taylor - plus two other first-year league players in Dustin Martin (3 games) and Ben Nason (3 games).  A further five team members have played less than 20 games - Mitch Farmer (5), Jayden Post (9), Andrew Collins (10), Ty Vickery (12), and Alex Rance (16).

You have to go all the way back to Round 17 of the 1993 season to find the last time Richmond fielded a side with such little senior league experience.

On that occasion, the Tigers took on the then Brisbane Bears at the Gabba, with a 20-man line-up containing a total of 916 games, and were beaten by 19 points - 18.10 (118) to 14.15 (99).

Richmond’s most experienced player that day was captain Jeff Hogg, in his 142nd game, with Craig Lambert (121st game), Tony Free (107th game) and Matthew Knights (107th game), the only other Tiger “centurians”.  Current Richmond CEO Brendon Gale was playing his 72nd game, assistant coach Wayne Campbell was in his 48th game, the Club’s  Head of Development, Tim Livingstone, was playing his 4th game, while it was the 10th  appearance at senior level for recently-retired Tiger champion, Matthew Richardson.