The Tigers led from start to finish after two goals in the first three minutes of the match, and unlike their opponent, had some sort of target up forward, where Ty Vickery kicked four goals. But Hardwick said Richmond was still a long way from the side he was trying to build, having last year finished only half a game outside the top four.

"All credit to Brisbane, they came to play, but I thought we were poor today," Hardwick said. "We overused the ball through hands, which was really disappointing. I don't think we played anyway near the standard that we require. We constantly gave the ball to a guy who was in a worse position, which was one of the things that you speak about as a coach and it's hard to get yourself out of at times."

Even normally efficient users of the ball in Richmond captain Trent Cotchin and Dustin Martin had their issues with efficiency in a dour struggle, but Vickery's four goals ultimately proved the difference. Tiger spearhead Jack Riewoldt was well held by the Lions' Justin Clarke.

Hardwick was pleased with his big forward, but said Vickery, whose four goals was an equal career best, still had a long way to go.

"He [Vickery] muffed a few chances. I thought he could be a little bit better at the ball. He probably went looking for the body of his opponent a bit too much, instead of jumping at the ball," he said. "I thought he was good, but I still think he can be a lot better. He's worked incredibly hard on the training track, which is pleasing from his point of view to get some reward for effort.”

Brisbane, meanwhile, had a sobering taste of how big a struggle life will be without retired champion Jonathan Brown. The Lions' key forwards in Daniel Merrett and Michael Close were both well beaten - Merrett completely outpointed by Richmond's Alex Rance - and they were two of their team's three lowest possession-getters for the match.

The Lions could have moved two games clear of bottom team St Kilda with a win and scored a fourth win from their past six matches. But despite coming within two points early in the third term and dominating play in the early part of the final quarter, Brisbane could manage only one goal in the final term.

Coach Justin Leppitsch, who was an assistant at Richmond before winning the Lions' senior role, said it was a lost opportunity.

"We had our chances, didn't we?" he said. "When two teams have the same amount of scoring shots, it sometimes comes down to those little things. We weren't clean, we chopped up the footy a bit. There's some lessons learned out of that. Our use of the ball was probably the big one to stand out."

Richmond faces a challenge over the next fortnight, taking on Port Adelaide at Etihad Stadium and then West Coast in Perth. Brisbane has three of its next four games at its Gabba home, taking on West Coast next week.