Richmond champion Jack Riewoldt has admitted he won't stand in the way of the club's list planning for the future amid discussions with the Tigers over his own prospects for 2023.
Several veterans of the Tigers' recent golden era have decided to hang up the boots this year, with Kane Lambert, Shane Edwards and Josh Caddy all announcing their retirement from the game.
Their decisions have mounted further attention on Riewoldt and former club captain Trent Cotchin, who are yet to confirm their playing futures beyond this season.
While Cotchin has been quieter on his own situation, Riewoldt has flagged a desire to extend his tenure at Punt Road to a 17th campaign next year.
With discussions between the three-time Coleman Medal winner and Richmond continuing, Riewoldt opened up on where things sat in negotiations.
Speaking onย SEN,ย Riewoldt said that while he is hopeful of adding to the club's push for another premiership, he will be understanding if the Tigers go in the opposite direction.
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"It's funny because you want to sort of see where the club sees you," he said.
"Clearly at nearly 34 years of age i'm not gonna be going out and playing the best football my career. Well I could, that'd be great.
"But it's a really holistic discussion on what is best for the football club, what's best for me.
"There's a slight monetary side of it, which is probably the most irrelevant thing out of all of it.
"I don't want to be feeling like I'm taking someone else's spot if they feel like they're the next person coming through and that the club is going to be better for that. But I've also got to back myself in that if I feel like I've got something to add then I'll certainly be putting my hand up to play.
"I feel like I've become a really good foil for obviously 'Lynchy' (Tom Lynch), who is one of the premier key forwards in the competition.
"[There are] a few bits of water to go under the bridge still, but I feel like I'm playing pretty well at the moment."
While Tom Lynch will continue as the focal point of Richmond's attack, his new key-position partner outside of Riewoldt is yet to emerge.
Lynch has booted a club-high 55 goals in 2022, 19 more than Riewoldt this season, while swingman Noah Balta (13 goals) is the next highest among the Tigers' talls.
Richmond have moved to secure the services of several key names in recent weeks as they eye the future, with the likes of Liam Baker (2024), Daniel Rioli (2027), Noah Cumberland (2024), Ben Miller (2024), Marlion Pickett (2023) and Tyler Sonsie (2025) among those putting pen to paper at Tigerland.
The retentions leave Riewoldt, Cotchin, Sydney Stack, Jake Aarts, Riley Collier-Dawkins, Jack Ross and Maurice Rioli among those yet to lock in their stays for 2023.
Riewoldt sits fourth on Richmond's all-time goalkicking leaderboard with 751 majors from 324 games, the second most caps as a Tiger behind club great Kevin Bartlett.
