Matthew Richardson was born on the 19th March 1975 starting his football in Devonport. As a teenager, he wanted to be an accountant. This ambition lasted for about six months at high school, until he realised it wasn’t for him.
He is a ‘footy-head’. “If I wasn’t playing, I’d be going to the footy,” he says. “I often go to other games. I do enjoy getting away from it at times, but I follow what’s happening at other clubs.”
He was recruited to Richmond and made his debut in 1993. In his first season he was an AFL Rising Star nominee.
He has made a name for himself as an enigmatic full forward capable of producing great feats of high jumping and marking on his day but has been relatively injury prone during his career.
In 2001 he produced some of the best football of his career in a rare, relatively injury-free season and again proved himself one of the AFL's elite marking forwards. He overcame a knee injury pre-season to play 22 matches and boot 59 goals. Matthew was the leading mark-taker in the AFL, averaging eight per game, and took the most contested marks. Continued to mix periods of brilliance with frustration due to indifferent goalkicking. His form leading into the finals was faultless and peaked with a 17-mark performance against the Kangaroos in round 21.
His honours as a player so far have included a club best and fairest award in 1996 and 1999. He was selected in the All-Australian teams for 1996 and 1999.
He played in the International Rules Series in 1999 and has followed in the footsteps of another Tasmanian Richmond goalkicker Michael Roach winning the leading goalkicker awards in 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001.
He is also a recipient of the Alex Jesaulenko Medal in 1996.
So far he has polled 63 Brownlow Medal career votes and in 2001 votes polled 9 votes.
Richardson says that from the time he arrived at Punt Road from Devonport, he was confident he would have a long career in the AFL. But he admits he would like to have achieved more to this point.
“I think that if I didn’t have as many injuries over the years, I would have done more than I have,” he says. “I should be closer to 200 (games) than 150,” says the 144-gamer. “I’ve missed basically two full seasons – that’s disappointing. But if you’re playing footy, you’ve got to expect to cop some injuries.”
Since making his debut as a gangly 18-year-old, Richardson has added about 20 kilograms to hit the scales at 103 kilograms and has refined some of his reckless on-field ways. He says he is now a more controlled, disciplined, consistent and team-orientated player.
His one regret as a footballer is that his career has stopped him from spending a year overseas backpacking. “It’s probably the only thing away from footy that I miss; you can’t get on a plane and go whenever you want,” he says.
PLAYER HONOURS
2nd best and fairest 1996, 1999, 2002; All-Australian 1996, 1999; International
Rules Series 1999; leading goalkicker 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002,
2003, 2004; AFL Rising Star nominee 1993; Alex Jesaulenko Medal 1996.
PLAYER STATS
Brownlow Medal: 2004 votes 10; career votes 89.
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Matthew Richardson - A Tasmanian Football Legend
