Prized Richmond recruit Tom Lynch says he's recovered well from his first AFL game in eight months.
The former Gold Coast forward kicked three goals in the Tigers' opening round win over Carlton at the MCG, watched by the biggest crowd he has played in front of.
The 26-year-old says while his body is a bit sore, his knee - which has undergone two surgeries since July last year - feels strong and he will be straight back into training before Richmond face Collingwood on Thursday night.
"I was a bit sore after my first game everywhere else besides the knee, the knee feels really good and I'll train today," Lynch said on Tuesday morning.
Lynch said he was feeling the pressure in front of the Tiger Army with an early set shot against the Blues, which he nailed, but admitted he was a little rusty.
"I probably wasn't expecting to come out and mark everything but I would have liked to have taken a few more, especially in that last quarter," he said.
"Dimma (Richmond coach Damien Hardwick) was really good and said, 'You're going to get better in a week's time, a month's time', so with a bit more match fitness and touch I'm looking forward to clunking a few more marks."
The last meeting between the Tigers and Collingwood was last year's preliminary final, with the Magpies upsetting the 2017 premiers.
Lynch said while he wasn't a part of that loss he could see this week that it would motivate the players.
"From what I can gather, every time we play Collingwood it's a massive game," he said.
"We got beaten in the prelim final so there is a fair bit of sting among the boys.
"They played in a grand final, so you want to test yourself against the best in the competition."
Star defender Alex Rance will be missing from the return clash after he underwent a knee reconstruction on Tuesday.
Lynch said he was surprised by Rance's selfless reaction after his season-ending injury.
"He (Rance) was in here Sunday, he's quite an amazing human to be honest," Lynch said.
"Ever since I got here, I've been quite impressed with him, more so since he's done the injury.
"He hasn't thought about himself at all, he's just been thinking about the boys and the club, it's quite incredible."
