Throughout a 14-season career in which he played 302 games, Dustin Martin rarely shed a tear, but that changed when he said goodbye to Tigers fans at the MCG on Saturday.
Martin could not contain his emotions as he returned to the cathedral of football for the first time since suddenly retiring with immediate effect three weeks ago, sitting in a box with the likes of his outgoing teammate, Richmond great Dylan Grimes.
He watched as the Tigers were condemned to their first wooden spoon since 2004 when Gold Coast spoiled their farewell party with a 14.10 (94) to 10.6 (66) victory.
Marlion Pickett, who made his debut in Richmond’s 2019 grand final win, received a standing ovation from the Tigers faithful when he came on in the third quarter after starting his final AFL game as a substitute.
The loudest roar of the day came when Pickett scored a goal in the fourth quarter.
The notoriously media-shy Martin, Pickett and Grimes received a rapturous reception from the 34,577-strong crowd as the trio took an emotional tour of the MCG after the final siren.
Just as he did after his 300th game in June, Martin gave a brief interview to former Richmond teammate Jack Riewoldt.
“I’m pretty excited, it’s pretty surreal,” Martin said, visibly moved.
Martin could not hold back the tears in an incredibly rare display of emotion as he said goodbye to Tigers fans at the SCG on Saturday (pictured)
After 14 seasons, 302 games and three titles, Martin leaves the game as one of Richmond’s finest players in the club’s long history.
The 33-year-old expressed his love for the Tiger army in a highly charged interview at the MCG.
“It feels a little weird. I think after today I’ll probably get over it completely.
‘As everyone knows, I love the club very much, I love all of them (the fans) very much.
“I’m going to miss this place so much. I’m so grateful to be a Tiger.”
When Riewoldt asked him to name a standout moment from his career, ‘Dusty’ replied: ‘There have been a lot of amazing moments throughout my career, but you can’t match the OG in 2017. That was pretty special.’
Asked to give one last message to the Tigers’ army, Martin replied: “I love you all so much.”
“They have loved and supported me so much. I love you all so much. Thank you for everything.”
“It was fantastic that our Tigers army, it’s amazing that they were able to come out to support not only the club, but also two players (Martin and Grimes) who weren’t even playing in the game,” Tigers coach Adem Yze said.
‘We have to acknowledge our fans who came and showed that respect and gratitude.
“It’s fitting that we can say goodbye to those guys and hopefully show them how much we love them.”
The Tigers are set to embark on a brutal rebuild, with Liam Baker, Daniel Rioli, Shai Bolton and Jack Graham likely to end up at new clubs next year.
‘Dusty’ leaves the game as one of football’s modern legends, and every Richmond fan at the MCG wanted a piece of him.
Graham scored the opening goal of the match, while Bolton, Baker and Rioli, who will join Hardwick on the Gold Coast, also got on the scoresheet in their potential farewell to Richmond.
Three years removed from the last of their three titles in four seasons, the Tigers will go into the draft with the No. 1 pick for the first time since selecting Brett Deledio in 2004.
Richmond could have avoided finishing 18th had they beaten the Suns after North Melbourne were annihilated by Hawthorn on Saturday.
The Kangaroos’ 124 points dropped their percentage to 63.5 per cent, and even a narrow win by the Tigers allowed them to leapfrog out of last place and hand North its third wooden spoon in four seasons.
But Gold Coast opened the game with six goals to two in the second quarter to lead by 32 points at halftime.
The Tigers showed much more fight in the second half, taking control of the game at all costs but were unable to reduce the margin to less than three goals as Gold Coast bowed out in their only game of the year at the MCG.
Gold Coast recorded their most successful season ever with a 28-point victory.
Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick hugs Martin after his Suns spoiled the farewell party with a win that took them to their best record in an AFL season.
Dylan Grimes (left) and Marlion Pickett (center) joined Martin (right) in bidding a fond farewell in front of nearly 35,000 fans.
Although their bid to secure their first ever finals berth will stretch into their 15th AFL season, the Suns finished 2024 with an 11-12 record, surpassing their previous most successful campaigns in 2014 and 2022 (10 wins).
“We want to play here more, but we have to keep up our end of the bargain,” Suns coach Damien Hardwick said.
“We have to start being a consistent team, capable of playing in finals, and we haven’t achieved that yet.
We believe we are on that journey, but we also understand that to earn this privilege of playing at the great MCG, you have to play with a sustainable brand.
Suns forward Jack Lukosius has scored two goals as he weighs a possible move back to his home state of South Australia during the off-season.
Hardwick had hoped that Lukosius, who had been signed, would stay at the Suns, and turned down lucrative offers from Adelaide and Port Adelaide.