Richmond are confident they can rebuild and reload for a new era after Dustin Martin’s retirement effectively turned the page on the Tigers’ extraordinary dynasty.
The superstar midfielder, who announced on Tuesday he was hanging up the boots effective immediately, was the face of the club’s dominance between 2017 and 2020, which delivered three premierships.
The Tigers great has been the subject of intense media speculation surrounding his future throughout the season, and told teammates on Tuesday of his decision to call it quits effective immediately.
The 33-year old bows out as an undisputed legend of the club and the AFL as a whole, having won an unprecedented three Norm Smith Medals as the centre figure of Richmond’s three premierships in four seasons from 2017-2020.
“It is hard to put into words what the Richmond Football Club means to me, I love this place so much,” Martin said.
“I will be forever grateful for the love and the support I have received from the people here.
“To my teammates, the brotherhood that we all share is what I value most, as well as the bond with the staff and coaches… thank you to all of you.
“To my family and friends, thank you for your unconditional love and support.
“To the Tiger Army, I have always felt loved and supported throughout my career, and for that, I will be forever grateful. The memories that we have created together will live with me forever.
Thank you.”
Dustin Martin of the Tigers celebrates kicking a goal. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
Quickly becoming one of the AFL’s most exciting young talents after being selected with the Tigers’ prized pick 3 in the 2009 draft, Martin finished fourth in the club’s best and fairest in his debut season of 2010, and would have been among the favourites for the AFL Rising Star award had he not been ineligible due to suspension.
However, his burgeoning career hit turbulence in 2012 and 2013: Martin was handed a club-imposed two-match ban after a boozy night with teammate Daniel Connors, who was sacked over the incident, and a year later came so close to a move to GWS that he even toured the Giants’ facilities before the fledgling club got cold feet.
Martin’s decision to remain at the Tigers would prove a fateful one: after breaking through for his maiden All-Australian berth and Richmond best and fairest in an otherwise nightmarish 2016 season, his 2017 was one for the ages.
Described by no less a judge than Leigh Matthews as the greatest individual season ever played, Martin was the key figure in the Tigers’ rise from laughing stock to shock premiers.
He averaged nearly 30 disposals a game, booted a career-best 37 goals, and won virtually every award on offer: the Brownlow Medal, both the AFL Players and Coaches Association’s MVP award – the former named after Matthews himself – the Gary Ayres Award for player of the finals series, a second straight Tigers best and fairest, another All-Australian selection… and sweetest of all, the Norm Smith Medal for his 29-disposal, two-goal performance in a 48-point grand final triumph over Adelaide for the club’s first premiership in 37 years.
From there, the Martin legend only grew: two more Norm Smith Medals followed in 2019 and 2020, with Martin booting four goals in each grand final as the Tigers claimed their second and third premierships to cement themselves as one of the greatest teams in VFL/AFL history.
His performance in their third flag, the 2020 triumph over Geelong, is acclaimed as one of the greatest grand final performances of all: down by 22 points midway through the second quarter, Martin dragged the Tigers home with four goals and 21 disposals, including a stunning major late in the match to complete his masterpiece.
As the Tigers’ glorious era ended, though, the good times grew more fleeting: Martin missed the final rounds of 2021 with a severe kidney injury after a heavy collision with Brisbane’s Mitch Robinson, watching on as Richmond missed finals for the first time since 2016.
He’d manage just nine games in 2022, and while a resurgence in 2023 had him named once again in the All-Australian extended squad, the departure of Damien Hardwick and long-time teammates and friends Trent Cotchin and Jack Riewoldt left him as one of the few remaining links to the Tiger dynasty.
Amid speculation over his future, which ranged from immediate retirement to reuniting with Hardwick at Gold Coast, Martin stuck around long enough to play his 300th match against Hawthorn, but the days of domination were over.
Sports opinion delivered daily
function edmWidgetSignupEvent() {
window.roarAnalytics.customEvent({
category: ‘EDM’,
action: ‘EDM Signup’,
label: `Shortcode Widget`,
});
}
The ever-reclusive veteran, as is his wont, will forego a traditional retirement press conference, but Tigers CEO Brendon Gale, speaking on his behalf, praised Martin as a Tigers legend.
When asked if Martin’s retirement made it feel like the end of that chapter at Richmond, Gale said: “To some extent, yeah.
“He (Martin) captures so much attention of our football club that he is a metaphor, he’s a symbol for the change we’re undertaking right now.
“We’re changing and growing before our very eyes … it’s just a continuation of that narrative.
“But it’s really exciting at the same time, it’s exciting – to see the growth and the renewal and the kids playing and it’s their time now.”
“I think Dustin would be most proud of what he was able to achieve playing for a team… for our team – and the magnificent role he was able to play within that system, which let him be every bit the footballing genius that he was always destined to be.
“That genius was most evident when the stakes were at their highest, when the crowd was at its loudest, when all eyes were on him, and when the moments needed a hero.
“Dustin did it his way, and we are all just so lucky to have been Richmond people during his era of dominance. So, all I can say on behalf of everyone associated with our great Club is thank you to an icon. To our icon.”
Martin retires with 302 games to his name, equal-sixth at the Tigers, and 338 goals.
Once eligible, he is a walk-up inductee into the AFL Hall of Fame, and it would be a shock were he not to eventually become immortalised as a Legend of the game.
There remains plenty of uncertainty at Punt Road on the personnel front, especially given their tough fortunes, amid a horror injury run, under first-year coach Adem Yze.
Contracted dynamo Shai Bolton reportedly wants to return to Western Australia for family reasons.
Vice-captain Liam Baker is tossing up whether to head west too, while Daniel Rioli is in Gold Coast’s sights and Jack Graham has interest from West Coast.
Richmond could seriously bolster their draft hand if any of their in-demand players leave.
‘Generational player’: Hawkins joins Martin in retirement
On a day for big-name retirements, Geelong superstar Tom Hawkins also announced he’d be hanging up the boots at the end of the 2024 season, after 359 games.
Hawkins has been an imposing figure in the Cats forward line since making his debut in 2007, and along the way has won three premierships at the club; 2009, 2011 and 2022.
The 36-year-old, who was selected in the 2006 National Draft under the father-son rule, has remained a one-club player eclipsing 796 goals for the Hoops, even claiming the 2020 Coleman Medal.
Adding to his glittering career, Hawkins is a five-time All Australian – and was named captain in 2022.
In 2024, he has kicked 15 goals from 12 games, although a foot injury has kept him off the field since round 15.
Geelong Cats General Manager of Football Andrew Mackie, and former teammate of Hawkins’ says he has made a contribution to the game both on and off the field.
“Tom has been an incredible presence both on and off the field at Geelong for the past 18 years, with his ability to play consistently at an elite level, along with humility and care for his teammates, trademarks of his career,” Mackie said.
“He is a generational player who will rightly be celebrated for his achievements on field, as well as the role he has played shaping our Club into what it is today.
“We thank Tom, his wife Emma, and their children Arabella, Primrose and Henry for all they’ve given our club.”