Richmond has secured the drought-breaking win it needed in extraordinary circumstances, with Sam Lloyd kicking the match-winning goal from 50m to pinch a remarkable one-point win against the Sydney Swans.

Lloyd marked just inside 50 with seconds remaining and kicked after the siren, falling to his knees as the ball sailed through to seal the 14.17 (101) to 15.19 (100) win at the MCG on Saturday night.

The final quarter produced some of the most thrilling football of the season as the Tigers threw out the conservative style they'd played for three quarters and put their foot to the floor.

They emerged from three-quarter time to kick five unanswered goals before the momentum swung the visitors' way.

The Swans had appeared destined for their seventh win of the year as they trapped the ball deep in their forward line with less than a minute to play, but the Tigers launched one final challenge and were rewarded.

One of the club's best wins for years, it was a coming-of-age match for tall forward Ben Griffiths, who kicked five goals, including a crucial dribble goal with five minutes left to make the win possible.

First-year Tiger Daniel Rioli also stamped himself on the contest with two final-quarter goals, including a brilliant running goal after taking three bounces down the MCG wing.  

It was a win that will release pressure on coach Damien Hardwick after six straight losses, with his players rewarding their coach's unwavering faith in difficult circumstances this season.

And it was achieved without injured skipper Trent Cotchin and important half-back Bachar Houli.

Brett Deledio was outstanding in his third game for the season, racking up 34 possessions, while Dustin Martin (31 and five inside 50s) and Anthony Miles (31 and nine clearances) stood up in the midfield.

Key forward Jack Riewoldt was a steadying influence all night, finishing with nine marks and six inside 50s.

"We were fortunate in the end to get the result we did [despite] our own inaccurate kicking, really," Hardwick said.

"We would get on top, they would get on top; it was a matter of making the most of those chances from a momentum point of view.

"We are a long way still off playing our absolute best footy and we're still giving up too many points, but it was a step forward on the win-loss column, no doubt about that."

Swans superstar Lance Franklin kicked five goals to move to the top of the Coleman Medal race, winning an enthralling battle with nemesis Alex Rance, who lost no fans despite his opponent's bag.

Hannebery or Franklin? Vote now in our Fan MVP award.

Midfielder Dan Hannebery, who gave the Swans the lead halfway through the final quarter with an important goal, finished with 33 possessions and two goals in a superb game.  

"We should still have won it in the end, as far as having our noses in front, but did we deserve to win it? We left it up to a bit of luck, I think," Swans coach John Longmire said.

"We were up and down tonight, there were some spurts of form and then it stopped.

"That was the story of the night, we weren't consistent across quarters and they were a bit better than us."

The Tigers could have set up their win in the third quarter, but made things difficult for themselves with poor kicking in front of goal.   

Hardwick's men went inside 50 seven straight times early in the term, but walked away with just 1.5, with Lloyd, Deledio, Martin and Ty Vickery all missing gettable set shots.

It would have made a loss impossible to stomach.

For the first time since round two, Richmond took a lead into half-time on Saturday night.

It was a hard-earned lead too, having started nervously and fallen 15 points down early in the second quarter, with the Swans appearing in cruise control.

The Tigers got themselves back into the game in two ways – they started playing a careful, high-possession style, and they got on top in the contested areas.       

At the main break they had racked up 68 more possessions and 38 more uncontested marks, working hard for each other to make sure they held onto the footy.

They also did the hard things, laying more tackles (25-16) and winning more clearances (17-9) to half-time, laying down the challenge for the Swans.

The Swans pounced when they had their chances, but so did Lloyd, erasing all the Tigers' wastefulness with one brilliant set shot.

MEDICAL ROOM
Both teams emerged unscathed on Saturday night and will be boosted by the returns of some big names in round eight. Tigers skipper Trent Cotchin declared he would be back after missing two games with a wrist injury, while Swans midfielder Josh Kennedy, who was withdrawn late in the week, is likely to return from a minor hamstring problem. Richmond half-back Bachar Houli confirmed his wrist injury was a fracture and he would see his surgeon on Monday.

NEXT UP
The Tigers travel across the country to take on the winless Fremantle at Domain Stadium in a clash that presents a golden opportunity to build momentum. The Swans are back at the MCG for the second straight week to face Hawthorn on Friday night.  

RICHMOND              3.5   6.10    7.15   14.17   (101)                  
SYDNEY SWANS      5.3   6.5      11.9   15.10   (100)          

GOALS

Richmond: Griffiths 5, Lloyd 3, Riewoldt, Martin, Miles, Ellis, Rioli
Sydney Swans: Franklin 5, Hannebery 2, Heeney, Towers, Hewett, Tippett, Lloyd, Jack, Papley

BEST
Richmond: Griffiths, Deledio, Martin, Miles, Rance, Riewoldt, Edwards
Sydney Swans: Franklin, Hannebery, Jack, Tippett, Heeney

INJURIES 

Richmond: Nil
Sydney Swans: Nil

Reports: Nil

Umpires: Stephens, Nicholls, Harris

Official crowd: 36,014 at the MCG