Carlton v Richmond. MCG. Trent Cotchin goal in the fourth Picture: George Salpigtidis Source: Herald Sun
TRENT Cotchin is mortal. Which is a relief, given many might question whether the Richmond star had any weakness.
A season of sustained brilliance was rewarded with a runner-up finish in the 2012 Brownlow Medal.
He has since taken over as Tigers captain.
He seemingly can't be tagged, stopped or hated. In short, Cotchin has become the new Lenny Hayes: the player everyone loves to love.
But the relief comes from finding that Cotchin can be jealous like everyone else, as well as nervous.
Those emotions came to the fore in September as he found he envied those teams contesting the finals, and he proposed to his girlfriend Brooke in Bali.
Cotchin admits another September spent watching, rather than playing in, finals was hard to take.
"It's a funny one. I try to take myself away from me as a footballer when I watch those games. If I get too involved, I become too jealous and upset about the whole thing that I am not playing on the big day," he says.
"They are fantastic games to watch, and you can enjoy them, but there is always that little bit of hunger when you are watching them and a fair bit of jealousy as well."
That hunger - from Richmond's 12th consecutive failed campaign to make the finals - would eventually drive Cotchin to his biggest pre-season yet, but first he had a personal matter that needed his attention.
A matter that needed detailed planning and precise execution given his determination to propose to Brooke at the luxurious Semara villas.
"I had planned it prior to going to Bali and we had friends over there who helped me out with organising it at a specific beach in Uluwatu," Cotchin says.
"We booked one night at the place and, thankfully for me, there was a wedding up the top (of the resort) so the only option was a beach-front restaurant (Finn's Beach Club).
"So you catch the inclinator (escalator) down and as we went down there was "Marry Me" in candles on the beach.
"I stopped the inclinator on the way down and proposed. Then we went on down to the beach to have a nice dinner for two. And she said yes!"
The wedding will take place post-season, but Cotchin has unfinished business beforehand.
His drive to improve on his breakout season is enormous, as is his desperation to focus on the team's performance as its new captain.
New Richmond captain Trent Cotchin at punt Rd today. Cotchin wont be wearing the number 17 jumper made famous by Jack Dyer but will instead stick with his number 9 Picture: Klein Michael Source: Herald Sun
YOU hear the throw-away line issued by most players fresh from a stellar season: I can get better.
In Cotchin's case it seems possible, given the achilles injuries that once plagued him are gone.
"I reckon I would have probably done 90 per cent of every (training) session and I think that's about a 30 per cent increase in load in comparison to last year," he says.
"So that's massive for me and my head and confidence going into the season.
"You still need to get a kick and you can be as fit as you want without getting a kick, but it does give you confidence going into games.
"Having more load during pre-season, your body backs up quicker and faster and the more fit you are, the quicker your body recovers.
"Last year there were times I couldn't even train one session during the week.
"But hopefully that's not the case this year and I will be able to get decent work in between games rather than sitting on the sidelines making sure I am ready for the weekend."
Cotchin's style of play comes close to insulating him from taggers.
He is a pure ball player, ripping the ball loose from packs, winning his own possessions, linking up in scoring chains, and then marking as a forward in the manner of Jimmy Bartel.
Perhaps that is where the admiration comes from, with Cotchin happy that his conduct has impressed the football world.
"Look, it's almost humbling for people to have so much respect for you," Cotchin says.
"You are always going to have respect from your own supporters so it's nice to have people from other clubs or who don't even support the AFL say it's fantastic to see what you are doing, or congratulations on the captaincy, or good luck with it all.
"It's what you are after in life whether you are in football or business or working for someone.
"You are always after that respect and it's what I strive for in my life in general. Not too many people have much bad to say about me.
"I don't know if I am speaking out of line, but hopefully not too many people have negative thoughts."
Most people also wouldn't know that he won a car in a media award last year and donated it to a children's charity.
Richmond's Trent Cotchin reaches for the ball during the round one AFL NAB Cup match between the Tigers and Melbourne at Etihad Stadium. Picture: Getty Images Source: Getty Images
Cotchin has a straightlaced image - he was home for dinner close to sober following the club's Mad Monday celebrations - but now that he is captain he says he actually has to go out more, bonding with his fellow teammates.
"I am pretty much a clean skin. A lot of the boys say I am a bit of a grandpa and so forth. I always cop stick for that," he says.
"I enjoy my time with the boys, but I don't do too much of it. I have to have that balance because it's important to be part of the team and know what they are up to as a group."
HIS hobbies are simple - working with Brooke on her baby clothing business, travelling overseas, and getting down to the beach with family and friends.
They have two enterprises in development - homewares business Nooks & Crannies, and the clothing company Miku.
Cotchin's focus over the pre-season has been "more of a team approach", helping challenge the young players who will help Richmond rise up the ladder.
He is excited by the progress of young players such as Matt Arnot, Matt Dea and David Astbury, aware that Richmond must find a level of consistency across four quarters if it is to play finals football.
"I felt last year in the majority of matches I had an influence at some stage, but like we did as a team we probably failed to play out the entire game," Cotchin says.
"It's been well documented we lost a number of games by under two goals, and if we were more focused for the majority of games we would have won them, and then played finals."
Cotchin knows expectations will continue to build until they reach a crescendo with the Round 1 blockbuster on Thursday, March 28 against Mick Malthouse's Carlton.
He is smart enough not to make empty promises, except to state the Tigers will be ready.
"It is the first time Mick is coaching an actual game for them, and obviously (close mate Matthew) Kreuzer and I banter about who is in a better position coming in," Cotchin says.
"But when it comes down to the crunch it will be those willing to put their head over the ball and win the contested footy.
"One percenters will win that game, not the showy things.
"We have lost the last four or five (Round 1) games, so it's going to be so exciting."
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