Richmond assistant coach Craig McRae expects the bulk of the club's available premiership players to face Collingwood in Sunday's pre-season blockbuster at Wangaratta's Norm Minns Oval.
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While 11 of the best players from both clubs, including Richmond's Dustin Martin and Pies' Scott Pendlebury, aren't available due to tomorrow night's much-anticipated interstate clash, the Tigers will still field enormous firepower.
"If you're going by our last intraclub, which is only last Thursday, we had pretty much everyone bar (2017 premiership player) Kamdyn McIntosh play some minutes," McRae said.
"I would have thought we've got most of the magnets to choose from and if you go on previous years, most of the guys have played, when they have been available, but their time is limited."
The Tigers played the last AFL pre-season practice match on the Border and North East, smashing Essendon by 87 points in February, 2018.
The trademark pressure which took the club to the previous year's premiership destroyed the Bombers and little has changed since.
Richmond again returns as premiers following that 89-point annihilation of GWS.
Marlion Pickett was the unlikely star after becoming the first player in 67 years to debut in a decider.
"Based on the intraclub, he looks like he's set himself for a really good season," McRae said.
"(Fellow premiership player) Shai Bolton has had a really good pre-season to take his game to a new level."
The livewire Bolton impressed two years ago with three goals against the Bombers.
Given the Tigers' strength and depth, there will be a host of players who missed the flag desperate to shine.
"Fans will be excited by guys like Sydney Stack, he's had a good pre-season," McRae said.
"We've got a couple of young ruckmen who are developing in Mabior Chol and Callum Coleman-Jones."
The Tigers will name an extended squad from 6.20pm on Thursday, with the final team announced at 5pm on Friday.
In a massive coup for fans, Richmond will host an open training session at Norm Minns Oval from 3pm on Saturday.
Meanwhile, host club Wangaratta has a pre-match function from 3pm.
The celebrity panel will include former Collingwood forward Rene Kink, who played 154 games between 1973-1983, earning the nickname 'The Incredible Hulk'.
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The match itself starts at 4.10pm on Sunday.
The Richmond-Essendon match attracted 7681 fans, but given the excitement around the two powerhouses and prospect of fine weather, officials are hoping for a massive crowd.
