Richmond CEO Brendon Gale has paid tribute to the Tiger Army, on the back of the Club’s announcement of a 10th consecutive operating profit.

The Tigers have reported an operating profit of $1,329,530 this year, and improved their net asset position from $22.38 million to $23.71 million.

“Our people, cop a bit from time to time for being bandwagon supporters, but I think what this (the financial results) really underlines is the strength of the loyalty of our members, and our fans, to back up year after year.  And, we certainly don’t take that for granted,” Gale said on SEN.

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“I think it’s really having some concrete plans in place . . . just harnessing the talent of the people we have internally, putting some pretty solid plans in place, that have been pretty well thought through, and sticking to them.

“But, one of the central parts of that, was putting our members at the centre of the organisation.

“We don’t just exist for our members – we exist because of them.

“That’s the way you speak about them, it’s the way you speak to them, it’s the way you inform them, it’s the way you service them, it’s the way you price and develop your membership products . . .

“They’re the centre of our entire club, and I think it starts from there.”

Gale also emphasised the important part that financial strength played in improving on-field performance.

"We set out a few years ago to really build a strong organisation, and a strong business model, because footy clubs cost a lot of money to run, so you can’t really have a competitive footy team unless you’ve got a strong business,” he said.

“We’ve worked hard to build a solid club, and we certainly don’t take that result for granted.  But, as we all know, it’s all about footy and, whilst we can meet their needs, we’ve got to keep getting better.  And, that’s the big challenge in front of us.”