Richmond has suffered a heartbreaking one-point loss to Fremantle at Patersons Stadium.

Matt White put the Tigers in front with two minutes on the clock, but a Hayden Ballantyne snap soon after secured victory for the Dockers by the narrowest possible margin.

It was Richmond’s fifth straight loss at the Perth venue, and left it with a 3-2 record heading into next Saturday night’s clash against Geelong.

Ty Vickery and Chris Knights kicked three goals each for the Tigers, while Trent Cotchin (26), Brandon Ellis (25) and Bachar Houli (23) were among the major ball winners.

Ballantyne ended with four goals for the home side, and Michael Barlow topped the stats sheet with 31 disposals.

Richmond jumped out of the blocks, kicking the first three goals of the game, including the first to Shaun Grigg within 30 seconds of the opening bounce.

When Ty Vickery converted a set shot with 11 seconds remaining in the opening stanza, the margin was 20 points.

Fremantle fought back early in the second quarter, hitting the lead at the 11-minute mark, and took a two-point lead into half time after both teams traded goals for the remainder of the term.

Luke McGuane reinstated Richmond’s lead early in the third quarter, but the Dockers kicked three of the last four goals to lead by nine points at the final change.

The final term was a tough struggle, and the Tigers fought the game out to the final siren, kicking three goals in-a-row to snatch the lead before having the game taken from them in the final 90 seconds.

In all, there were nine lead changes, in a match which could have gone either way.


FREMANTLE        2.0   7.5   10.8  12.9  (81)                  
RICHMOND          5.2   7.3   9.5  12.8 (80)           

GOALS
Richmond:  Vickery 3, Knights 3, McGuane 2, Martin, Grigg, White, Riewoldt
Fremantle:  Ballantyne 4, Mayne 3, Walters 2, Suban, Hill, Crowley,

BEST
Fremantle: Barlow, Griffin, McPharlin, Pearce, Fyfe, Hill, Walters
Richmond: Knights, Edwards, Martin, Ellis, Cotchin, Vickery, White

INJURIES
Richmond:  Nil
Fremantle: Bradley (knee)

SUBSTITUTES
Richmond:  Brad Helbig replaced by Robin Nahas in the third quarter
Fremantle: Kepler Bradley replaced by Nick Suban in the second quarter