Richmond great Matthew Richardson’s match-winning performance for Tasmania against a Victorian/All Stars representative side, in a charity match at North Hobart Oval on the weekend, has sent the Tiger talent scouts into a spin.

So dominant was ‘Richo’, there’s growing speculation the Tigers may even approach the AFL with a special request to see if they can reclaim the 40-year-old under the father-son rule.

It’s been 23 years since Richmond initially secured Richardson’s services via the league’s father-son rule, and that worked out pretty well, with the big No. 12 kicking 800 goals in 282 games.

Since his last AFL game in 2009, Richo has developed into a multi-media megastar, and it’s highly unlikely he would be prepared to take a hefty pay cut to make a playing comeback with the Tigers.

As they say in the football classics, however, never say never . . .

Richo, in his first game since announcing his retirement from league football, kicked six goals (6.3 and two out of bounds on the full) to spearhead a 32-point win for Tasmania in the annual ‘Relive the Rivalry’ charity match, which raises money and awareness for Muscular Dystrophy Tasmania.

The Devonport-born Richardson, who pulled on a Tasmanian state jumper for the first time since 1993, was a crowd favorite right throughout the game and afterwards, capturing the imagination of the fans (and the Richmond recruiters) with his brilliant on-field deeds.

Former Sydney backman Troy Luff had the unenviable task of curbing Richo’s brilliance for the first three quarters, before Victorian/All Stars coach David Rhys-Jones shifted ex-Brisbane dashing defender Mark Zanotti on to him in the final term.

Nothing, however, could stop Matthew Richardson’s mighty impact on the match.

There were many other notable former AFL players competing on the day, including Tony Liberatore, Michael O’Loughlin, Adrian Fletcher, Daryl White, Shaun Smith, Paul Dimattina, Brodie Holland, Simon Atkins and Garry Baker. 

But it was Richo, clearly, who stole the show.

In typically modest fashion, the great man played down his dominant display . . .

“All my goals came from playing on after taking a mark, otherwise I wouldn’t have made the distance,” he said.

“There was a strong, swirling wind, and I was also mindful of not tearing my hamstring off the bone.

“At one stage, I actually missed connecting with the ball, when having a set shot, which was pretty embarrassing.

“I’m really sore now, but it was a lot of fun.”

It now remains to be seen if Richo’s spectacular charity match comeback leads to what would be the greatest comeback in league football history . . .