Richmond coach Adem Yze has rejected suggestions the intense spotlight on Noah Balta's court appearance was a distraction that contributed to his AFL side's round-seven defeat to Melbourne.
The Tigers were forced to drop Balta for the Thursday night contest due to the premiership defender's court-imposed curfew, which requires him to be at his home between 10pm and 6am.
The 25-year-old was also handed an alcohol ban, fined $3000 and given an 18-month community corrections order as part of his punishment for assaulting a man in regional NSW on December 30 last year.
Richmond's handling of Balta - in particular their decision to play him against Gold Coast three days before he was sentenced - has brought plenty of heat on the club.
But Yze insisted his young team's heavy schedule in recent weeks was a far bigger factor in the 12.11 (83) to 9.9 (63) loss to Melbourne at the MCG.
"Three games in 11 days was more of a distraction or tougher for our players to handle," Yze said.
"A short week, the game was on us pretty quickly, so I don't think it was a distraction for our players.
"But he's a great player, he played really well last week and we missed him. It will be good to get him back in next week."
Balta shone in the upset win over Gold Coast in round six, playing his first game of the season after serving a four-match ban.
His absence against Melbourne opened the door for Campbell Gray to become the Tigers' sixth debutant of 2025.
The 21-year-old, picked up in last year's mid-season rookie draft, lined up alongside fellow fresh faces Sam Lalor, Luke Trainor and Jonty Faull, and produced one of the match's highlights.
"We miss him (Balta) because he's such a talent but Campbell Gray comes into the game and took a nice little one-hander and looked at home," Yze said.
"The exposure he got today against a good team and dealing with that momentum would've been great for him.
"Obviously not having Noah was disappointing but we had an opportunity to play a young player and he gets to play in front of (71,635 fans)."
Balta will return when Richmond (2-5) take on flag contenders Hawthorn (4-2) in an afternoon fixture back at the MCG on May 4.
