Richmond caretaker coach Jade Rawlings has set out to immediately reinvigorate the Tigers with youth, axing veterans Troy Simmonds and Joel Bowden among five changes for Saturday night's AFL clash with West Coast.

The five players added to the side, including debutant ruckman-forward Ty Vickery, are all aged 22 and under.

The others are ruckman Angus Graham and running players Shane Edwards, Robin Nahas and ex-Essendon utility Tom Hislop.

Along with Simmonds and Bowden, Rawlings discarded Tiger fans' whipping boys Kayne Pettifer and Jordan McMahon, along with courageous midfielder Mark Coughlan.

The omission of Bowden and Simmonds means Ben Cousins is the only player in the 22 out of the six Tigers aged 30-plus.

Fellow veterans Matthew Richardson and Nathan Brown are injured, as is former skipper Kane Johnson, who announced his retirement this week.

The Eagles made three changes, including calling up Fijian-born Nic Naitanui for his debut, meaning he will start his career in the same match as fellow top 10 draft pick and ruck prospect Vickery.

They also regained midfield dynamo Daniel Kerr from suspension and experienced defender David Wirrpanda from injury.

But premiership veterans Andrew Embley (ankle) and Adam Hunter (shoulder) were forced out of the side, while young forward Ben McKinley was dropped.

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP