Richmond coach Adem Yze hits back amid ugly new AFL claims surrounding Dustin Martin
Martin missed his third straight game as the Tigers went down by 41 points to Port Adelaide.
Richmond coach Adem Yze has slapped down claims he has been giving club veteran Dustin Martin special treatment following the Tigers' 41-point loss to Port Adelaide. With Richmond's season unravelling, Yze defended his decision to allow Martin to travel to New Zealand while the Tigers star struggles to shake a troublesome back injury.
Martin was subbed out of Richmond's loss to Carlton last month after experiencing back spasms. He has since missed games against Fremantle, GWS and Port Adelaide, all losses, with the nagging injury, and was cleared to leave the country to visit family while continuing his rehab.
Yze earlier this week said Martin had been left frustrated by his interrupted season, which has come amid uncertainty over whether he'll extend his legendary career into 2025. Speculation is running rife that he'll sign for the Gold Coast Suns and reunite with former coach Damien Hardwick for next season, which has led to claims that the club was babying the veteran in a bid to keep him at Punt Road next season.
And Kane Cornes is one AFL pundit who has taken aim at Yze for going too easy on Martin, calling for the Tigers coach to put his foot down. "Dustin Martin is allowed to do what he wants to do as he pleases," Cornes said on Nine's Sunday Footy Show.
"From the outside, that is clearly obvious. What is going on internally, we don't know because they won't share that information." Martin was not present at the club on Thursday when Yze confirmed he would not be named to face Port Adelaide but that didn't sit right with the Port Adelaide great. "He didn't really come back to try and improve his fitness for this game (against Port Adelaide)," Cornes said.
"He doesn't look like he wants to play. He's doing as he pleases... I'd love for the club to just take a bit more control and power back in this situation."
RELATED:
Isaac Heeney takes new dig at Toby Greene over GWS Giants video
Dean Cox's revelation about wife as AFL great makes call on Eagles job
Nathan Buckley makes eye-opening call on taking senior coaching role
Adem Yze rejects notion Dustin Martin can do as he pleases
But Yze rejected those claims and said the club are just doing what is best for their star's health. “I don’t really care what other people say … he needed some time away,” Yze said. “He wasn’t going to be available to play, so he got away and spent some time with family, and he’ll come back into our program and try to get fit for the next game.
“The week before he had some time away, his back was a bit crook, so he’s come back and he will hopefully train this week and hopefully be available for the Collingwood game. He was a bit sore the other day when he did get back and couldn’t finish training, so we need a full week of training for him to be available.”
Richmond hopeful of getting Dustin Martin back on the field
Martin is seen as some chance to play against the reigning premiers next week and from there Yze is hopeful the star veteran can put a string of games together. "Right now the frustration is not only that (he can't play) - but he can't train to show and get prepared for the next game," Yze said.
"So when that is, hopefully, it is next week, we just need to get some volume into him. So hopefully he has a nice week next week. The main thing is just getting him back and playing one game, let alone the rest of the season."
