AFL legend and beloved Channel 7 commentator Matthew Richardson has been mercilessly mocked by his colleagues.
Ahead of the Friday night battle at Marvel Stadium, Richardson — a former Richmond champion and passionate Tigers man — was previewing the match between the Western Bulldogs and Brisbane Lions with star Seven commentators Abbey Holmes and Luke Hodge.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Richo reacts after seeing Trent Cotchin in Lions gear.
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And that was when the Seven cameras spotted former Richmond captain Trent Cotchin in the Brisbane camp.
Cotchin and Richardson briefly crossed paths at Tigerland, with Richardson winding up his career (at the end of 2009) as Cotchin was starting in 2008.
Cotchin obviously went on to become a Brownlow medallist and three-time premiership captain for the club.
And Holmes couldn’t resist when she saw Cotchin in the Brisbane hoodie.
“Well, how much does this hurt your soul, Matty Richardson?” Holmes asked.
Richardson was gobsmacked.
“Who’s that?” he said.
Holmes replied: “Who do you reckon it is?”
Richardson: “That is not Trent Cotchin … what is going on?”
Hodge is a legend of Hawthorn, but finished his career at Brisbane and shares a passion for both clubs.
“Cotch is down there doing some leadership work at the Lions,” Hodge said with a broad smile, deliberately adding some salt to Richo’s wound.
Holmes joined in: “It doesn’t look right, does it?”
Cotchin retired at the end of last season and took on a role at Brisbane this year that sees him working with the Lions’ captains.
He’s part of the mass exodus from the Tigers, that includes former coach Damien Hardwick (who’s now at the Gold Coast) and CEO Brendon Gale who is set to depart at the end of this year and become the inaugural chief executive of the new Tasmanian team.
“Everyone is leaving the Tigers … fair dinkum,” Richardson said.
“Oh gosh,” said Holmes.
Hodge: “You stayed loyal, didn’t you?”
It was then Richardson let rip.
“That’s it, he’s dead to me, Cotchin. I’ll never speak to him again,” Richardson said, leaving Hodge and Holmes in stitches
“He’s shattered,” Holmes said.
While the Cotchin image may have also shattered Tigers fans, they are preparing for some better news with superstar Dustin Martin set to play 300th AFL game next week.
Martin will play his milestone match against Hawthorn at the MCG on June 15 in what first-year coach Adem Yze has described as “a massive week for our club”.
“It’s one that we want to celebrate one of our greatest players,” Yze said after the Tigers’ showck win over Adelaide.
“We do that really well at our footy club … celebrate our people. And this is an opportunity to celebrate one of our best.
“We will obviously have an amazing week leading up to it.
“Our players will want to play well for him and make it a big occasion for him.
“So yeah, we’re not going to shy away from the fact that we want it to be a big spectacle and we want to obviously play well for him.”
– With AAP