In the 2000 draft Richmond used an early pick on a kid from Perth called Mark Coughlan. I can remember that he did not seem overly impressed at the time, but being a young kid in WA and having to move all the way across the country I can understand that.

2001 was a good year for the Tigers and Coughlan got a taste of the big time, but could not cement a senior spot and he also suffered his first bout with the curse of modern football, the dreaded osteitis pubis.

Midway through 2002 Mark Coughlan was earmarked as the man to replace the well loved Matthew Knights in the midfield and his late season form was something that gave the fans heart and secured the young midfielder the 3rd place in the club's best and fairest.

2003 was the breakout year, whilst the team did not perform well, Cogs, as he was now known, excelled and was one of the club's few shining lights. In the space of year he had gone from promising young player to future superstar, potential captain and finished off the year by winning the Jack Dyer medal for the clubs best and fairest player.

There was only one thing that could stop Coughlan from fulfilling his potential and that was OP. Unfortunately it returned in 2004 and restricted him to less than 10 games for the season and serious doubts about his long term future surfaced.

Although the OP also interrupted Mark's 2005 pre season he played nearly every game that season and there were tantalising glimpses of his best form, unfortunately his curtailed pre season did eventually tell on him later in the year and he was lucky the season ended where it did.

Cogs has fluctuated this year and whilst he can play well in bursts his kicking disappoints and he appears to have lost a yard of pace. On Saturday night against the Fremantle Dockers Coughlan turned the clock back, he racked up possessions at will, prompting some commentators to remark that he had brought his own ball, finished the night with a remarkable 35 touches, most of them damaging and was named best on ground in a losing side.

Welcome back Cogs.