Einsiedel and Greg Strachan, who had been a premiership teammate of Weightman the previous season and would also be part of the senior premiership side two years later. Weightman was named in the forward pocket as second rover to club champion Kevin Bartlett, and joined a special group of VFL/AFL players to score a goal with their first kick. He would kick three for the afternoon and gather 12 disposals in a 77-point victory, impressing with his pace and ball use. However, he quickly found himself back in the reserves when the team's fortune slumped. This was the pattern for his first two seasons before his career turned around in 1980. After several years in the wilderness, Richmond returned to form due to the improvement of a number of young players such as Weightman. He was now sharing the roving duties with West Australian Robert Wiley. The Tigers stormed through the home-and-away season, winning 11 consecutive games from Round 4 to 14 and missing out on the minor premiership only after losing to in the final round. Richmond would finish third on the ladder, with the highest total points aggregate (their 2,754 points falling just shy of the record set by Carlton the previous season) and also the best percentage. The third-placed finish meant they would have to face in the Qualifying final at VFL Park. In a game significant for Kevin Bartlett breaking the then VFL games record and a quarter-time confrontation between coaches Peter Jones and Tony Jewell, Weightman gathered 21 disposals and kicked four goals to be among the Tigers' best players in a 42-point win. Weightman was named starting rover in the 1980 Grand Final, and kicked the first goal of the game at the 5-minute mark after making position in open space up the ground to mark a pass from Jim Jess, then playing on and steering his shot through from a slight angle. He ended the game with 20 disposals (14 of them handpasses) and was rated among Richmond's best players on the day. In the post season, he won Victorian selection for the first time. However, in a sign of the decade that was to come, Richmond were unable to repeat their success in 1981. They spent much of the season hovering between fifth and seventh position on the ladder, and needed to beat arch-rivals Carlton in the final home-and-away round to have