Tom Brown has earned rich praise after his game-saving tackle, with coach Adem Yze comparing him to Richmond's three-time AFL premiership defender Nick Vlastuin.

Brown mowed down Tom Gross as the West Coast youngster charged forward inside the last minute and the Tigers held by two points, 11.15 (81) to 11.11 (79) on Sunday at the MCG..

It was Richmond's third victory for the season and they kept the Eagles winless.

While it was 16th v 18th, this was far from the worst game of the season and the match featured 15 lead changes - eight of them in the second term.

"Browny's game across the board was terrific. (He) looked really potent ... how smart he is, he gets to play alongside Nick Vlastuin every week and I see a young Nick Vlastuin growing," Yze said.

"He's got the same temperament, the same ability and he has 'the footy chip' - he understands the game."

Brown's tackle came seconds after he had failed to spoil a mark in the middle of the ground.

Yze noted wryly that the young defender could feature on Richmond's post-game video edits, for the right and wrong reasons.

"To miss that spoil and then to flick the switch, to chase, is why he's such a good player," Yze said.

Rhyan Mansell turned on the jets ?#AFLTigersEagles pic.twitter.com/mlYIrLjfaj? AFL (@AFL) May 11, 2025

While Brown was among several younger Richmond players who impressed Yze, it was veterans such as Vlastuin who led the way.

Fellow defender Nathan Broad recovered from a gruesome mid-game finger dislocation to combine with Vlastuin in defence through the last quarter.

Captain Toby Nankervis, crunched by a gang tackle in the third term, kicked a crucial goal just before the last change and then rucked superbly through the final quarter.

The Eagles won centre clearances 16-9 and had Richmond on the back foot through the second and third quarters.

But the Tigers won contested possessions and Yze praised "our fight, our grit, our chase, our defence".

"You circle different games where you feel like you have more of a chance - and they would have done that for us," Yze added.

"They would have seen an opportunity to win ... we have to do that, we have to learn to embrace that challenge."

Eagles young gun Harley Reid was prominent, and kicked a booming goal from 50m to start the last quarter.

But a few minutes later, he gave away a 50m penalty - coach Andrew McQualter questioned whether that was the right call - and Hugo Ralphsmith also kicked a goal to put the Tigers back in front.

Harley from downtown ?#AFLTigersEagles pic.twitter.com/jqb8g8klA7? AFL (@AFL) May 11, 2025

Reid also was seen arguing with Tigers forward Tom Lynch at three-quarter time and then with a Richmond fan late in the game.

Yze and McQualter praised the character of their teams after late withdrawals, with the Tigers losing Jayden Short and Eagles co-captain Oscar Allen dropping out because of knee injuries.

West Coast's Jamie Cripps kicked a game-high three goals and Tyler Brockman racked up five clearances in the midfield.

Midfielders Tim Taranto and Jacob Hopper and forward Rhyan Mansell also impressed for the Tigers.

The Eagles were left rueing three behinds in the third term when in control. The Tigers then ended the quarter with two goals to set the scene for the thrilling end.

"We want to learn with a win, too, that would be a nice way to learn some lessons as well - but we're confident we're heading in the right direction," McQualter said.