Carlton reasserts itself as a premiership contender, Hawthorn continues an incredible run of form, and alarm bells continue ringing for Melbourne.

Here are the talking points from Round 13 in the AFL.

1. A few returning Tigers make a massive difference

It’s easy to talk about injuries at Richmond without fully grasping the tangible impact they have on the team. Thursday night certainly helped with that.

In a game that was to be decided first by little bits of class and quality and then by pressure and physicality around the ball, the Tigers had the three perfect incomings in Dion Prestia, Shai Bolton and Tim Taranto.

The Crows find their season over at round 13 for a number of reasons, among them their lack of pure ball winners in midfield and their lack of creativity outside of the also-absent Izak Rankine. It was in those areas that the Tigers got on top and eventually won the game.

Bolton and Liam Baker proved to be the livewires the game needed and the Crows couldn’t match, and when it became tough and tight in the last quarter, Taranto was particularly good.

This is just a taste of what Richmond could be with something closer to a full complement available. Judging them fairly in Adem Yze’s first season is going to be near enough to impossible, but seeing wins like this and a few young players excelling — among them Tom Brown and Seth Campbell — is enough to offer some hope for the rebuilding years ahead.

ABC Sport player of the year votes:

3. Noah Balta (Richmond)

2. Jordan Dawson (Adelaide)

1. Shai Bolton (Richmond)

(Votes are compiled by the ABC Sport radio commentary team after each match)

2. Lions make a midfield statement

Lachie Neale said himself after the game — Brisbane’s midfield has a happy knack of lifting itself for games against the other dominant midfields in the competition.