Revered Richmond official and dual 1970s premiership star, Neil Balme, is a huge fan of the current-day Tiger that wears his old No. 21 guernsey, Noah Balta.

Balme, in his new guest spot on Richmond’s official podcast ‘Talking Tigers’, spoke glowingly about the talented, tall, 20-year-old, who has played just 24 games of AFL football.

“He’s almost too good,” Balme said.

“Athletically, he’s so good. He could nearly play wing, he’s certainly got the capacity to play as an explosive forward, and he’s shown us how good he can play as a defensive back.

“He’s really quick, runs well, contests well . . .

“The challenge in footy is getting the whole game . . .That’s probably been his challenge in a sense, just to make sure that he’s there for two hours and gets everything right. And he’s been much, much better at that.

“In his early days, decision-making probably wasn’t as good as it needed to be. But that’s all experience. You’ve got to go through it to work it out.

“I’m really very proud of what he’s doing.

“He’s got the capacity, in truth, to be a genuine star. A lot of people have, but you’ve got to get all the other things right. You get the emotional things right, as well as the physical things, as well as the challenge of playing week after week.

“But I know he wants to, so I’m really quite excited about that.

“He’s so lucky that he’s so athletically gifted . . .

“If you look at the way our guys play, it’s a two-way game. So, you’ve got to defend, but you’ve got to attack from defence. And you’ve got to defend from attack.

“That’s why, when we’re at our best, we play really well as a team, and everyone does both of them. And he’s a good example of it, really . . .

“If he just sits back and punches away, and that’s all he does, he’s not as important to us as if he actually provides that offensive opportunity that he does.

“I’m really, really excited by him.”  

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