Richmond signalled over the pre-season that it wanted to add speed on the ball, and on Saturday it showed that in earnest against Fremantle in an official practice match.

Wanting to run the ball, and use handball to flick the footy around and exit congestion, there was a clear shift in how the Tigers are choosing to play under new coach Jarrad Donders.

Caitlin Greiser (13 disposals, two goals) was the major beneficiary of that quicker movement, allowing her to get more dangerous and compete in space, rather than fighting it out for a ball put on her head in an outnumber. The only real blemish on her game was conversion – two goals from six scores – but she settled well alongside fellow keys, No.1 draft pick Olivia Wolmarans and Gabby Seymour (15 disposals, one goal), the latter playing as a forward and taking ruck taps inside-50 in a role shift.

Connecting going forward was the Tigers' biggest work on, albeit clearly improved on last year.

There were signals that this could finally be Ellie McKenzie's year, fully fit and freshly crowned co-captain, she moved impressively through the middle, and pressing forward to finish with 25 disposals, six clearances, and a goal, while Mon Conti (25 disposals at 72 per cent efficiency) was the player everyone wanted to get the ball to thanks to her capacity to dash and break lines.

Coming into her second season, Sierra Grieves (18 disposals, one goal) looked comfortable around the footy, and fit the transition style that the club is developing.