Richmond's 2009 season may have been a disaster but it could also be remembered as the year that Richard Tambling finally came of age.

Tambling, who has forever lived in the shadow of the man taken immediately after him in the 2004 national draft in Hawthorn full-forward Lance Franklin, is now re-paying the faith the Tigers have always shown in him.

Not only is Tambling actually playing far better than Franklin at present - after the reigning Coleman Medalist was held goalless for the first time in three years on the weekend - but is also outperforming the other top five draftees from that draft in team-mate Brett Deledio, Hawthorn's Jarryd Roughead and the Bulldogs' Ryan Griffen.

The 22-year-old gathered over 30 possessions for the first time in his career during Saturday night's narrow loss to Adelaide on the Gold Coast - when he had 14 kicks and 17 handballs as well as picking up a very respectable nine contested possessions.

In the past five matches Tambling - who is revelling in his new role as a creative, running half-back - has had at least 24 possessions in every game and is averaging 22.25 possessions per game this season which is more than even Griffen, who is averaging 21.15 possessions per game with the high-flying Western Bulldogs.

Tambling's huge improvement this season is obvious when you consider his average of 22.25 touches per game this year dwarves his equivalent numbers of 12 per game in 2006, 13.6 in 2007 and 17.45 from last year.

The Tigers are naturally thrilled with Tambling's improvement this year, particularly after copping so much criticism for taking him at pick four and one pick ahead of Franklin in that 2004 draft.

"We always knew Richard Tambling had outstanding character and he is showing that by the way he is going about this year," Richmond football manager Ross Monaghan told Sportal on Monday.

"He is in a really good patch and justifying why he was an early draft selection some years ago."

While Tambling still has a long way to go to match the deeds of the player he is forever compared with in Franklin - who kicked a century of goals in the Hawks' premiership win last year - the much smaller Tiger is now emerging as a quality player in his own right in what is now his fifth season.

And given that lightly-framed indigenous players such as Tambling and Adelaide champion Andrew McLeod