Former St Kilda star Leigh Montagna has questioned whether Richmond have the motivation to go back-to-back in 2020.
The Tigers haven't been at their regular elite level in 2020, which has seen them win two of the last three premierships, and were again ordinary on Thursday night - going down to the Hawks by 32 points in a result that ultimately flattered their performance.
Speaking during the three quarter time break on Triple M's coverage of Thursday night's clash, Montagna didn't hold back in his assessment of the Tigers' ordinary performances to begin the season.
“It looks to me like they’ve gotta make some changes and mix up the dynamic, not just for this game but for their season,” Montagna said.
“I’ve watched all three of their games live now, and besides the first quarter onslaught against Carlton they were a bit pedestrian.
“Carlton matched them for three quarters, Collingwood they were pretty ordinary for most of the game and again tonight.
“So Duck (Wayne Carey), normally you give teams, you give ‘em one mulligan, two’s starting to be a bit of a coincidence.
“By the third time, I’m just wondering whether their desire and motivation for this season is here.
“I don’t know if they can climb the mountain once again."
Montagna then questioned whether the Tigers can win the flag in 2020 and where the Richmond team from the last three years has gone.
“I’m starting to question whether Richmond can win the flag this year.”
“[They had] maniacal pressure, the Riolis, the Castangas, the Boltons, Jack Grahams, all these guys, Lambert even a few years ago, they were so desperate,” he said.
“That really helped their superstar talent really shine… if those guys aren’t playing with that same desperation, maybe they’re just not this dominant team that we’ve come to expect for the last three years.”
Montagna finished by noting that there is still a lot of season left, but it's not the Richmond the football world has become accustomed to seeing.
'There's still plenty of time to play out, but what we've seen in three games, they're not the same Richmond team we're used to seeing."