Riewoldt and his Richmond teammates will grace the Devonport Oval turf on Saturday in the Hillcrest tribute match against Hawthorn, but that contest is just part of what has been described as a weekend of support from the league following December's Hillcrest Primary School tragedy.

In particular, spending time in the community and at schools via clinics on Friday and providing that connection is key for the Richmond great from Clarence, who admitted he "reiterated to the powers that be and the AFL that the game wouldn't be enough for what we wanted to do".

He hoped Saturday's match will showcase the very best of his home state.

"It is still such a close-knit community and we are all Tasmanians, and when people come to the state and we take people to the state there is this real sense of pride of where we are from,'' he said on Tuesday.

"I really wanted to show off to the AFL and the footballing world and the world out there that will be watching the game that we are one tight-knit community.

"Even though we are spread across an island and we have three or four major cities, we are still one community and that is the greatest strength that Tasmania will have.

"The initial plan was there [to play the game] and that is why I just pushed the button to try to get a bit more out of it."

From a personal perspective, Riewoldt said he had a "wide range of emotions" ahead of Saturday.

"I was in Tasmania when unfortunately the Hillcrest tragedy happened and there is a sense of bewilderment really and even to this day you just think 'how did this happen?' and there is this sadness,'' he said.

"But there is a real sense of pride though, that the organisation that I work for has gone out to seek to do something like this.

"So there are a wide range of emotions, and you only have to look at the football club's history to see the great players that have come from the Apple Isle that have played for the mighty Tigers to know there is this deep sense of connection there between Tasmania and Tigerland.

"I am a small part of that and a very proud part of that and I know there will be a lot of Tasmanian Tigers that have played for Richmond and do play for Richmond that will be very proud of what the club and what the AFL and Hawthorn are doing come Saturday.

"I just think it will be a great opportunity for everyone to get together and not only have some fun, but also grieve in a real community way by coming together and talk about what has happened, be there for each other and share that vulnerability.

"It will be a highly emotional event that you have to be extremely delicate with and everything that has been done for this game has come from a place in people's hearts that just want to help, and we are very lucky to be able to provide this."

On-field, Saturday will be key for Richmond ahead of its opening round clash with Carlton on March 17.

Riewoldt, who was played 305 games, kicked 715 goals, played in three premierships and won three Coleman medals, said RIchmond was set to have a full-strength team for the clash, with Trent Cotchin a likely inclusion and with Jack Graham the major name sidelined.

"It is still a really important game for us to perform well in,'' he said.

"With this slimline pre-season series only has two hit-outs, and maybe an eternal one as well, you need to get that value and time in the legs for the guys who will be pushing for the start of the season."

It will also be the first official game as co-captain for Riewoldt's fellow Tasmanian Toby Nankervis.

"It is a great achievement and great recognition,'' Riewoldt said of Nankervis' appointment.

"He is a bit of a Humphrey B. Bear really as he doesn't say a lot publicly, but internally his value and presence is second-to-none and that is only going to grow as he becomes more comfortable in this new leadership position.

"You only need to look at the leadership positions that Tasmanians have held at the Richmond Football Club and at all football clubs to know that this is a very prestigious moment, not only for Toby, but Dylan [Grimes] as well, but I have no doubt that there is a special part for Toby being captain for the first time in an official match in his home state, literally 100km from where he first started playing footy."

Riewoldt and Nankervis are two of four Tasmanians at Richmond, along with Sam Banks and Rhyan Mansell.

Chief executive Brendon Gale is from the North-West Coast.

Riewoldt also said he couldn't wait to play his first senior match at Devonport Oval, a ground and city he knows well considering his mother Lesley is from there and his dad Chris visited the venue while coaching at Clarence.

A post-match concert featuring Luca Brasi and the Healing for Hillcrest fundraising dinner will also take place on Saturday.

A crowd of about 9000 is expected for the sold out match.

The planned $750 million stadium on Hobart's waterfront has been welcomed by Riewoldt.

The new stadium's fate will be determined by whether Tasmania is successful in its quest to get an AFL license, a quest that will be decided when the AFL presidents vote on it later in the year.

"I think it is a fantastic plan as not a lot of stadiums are built so close to the CBD and Adelaide Oval is a great example of the atmosphere that a venue like this can create,'' Riewoldt said.

"I couldn't be more for what Premier Peter Gutwein and what the Tassie taskforce team has done to get this bid in order and it is so well thought through.

"It is not perfect and perfection is something a lot of people strive for but never get, but for me the roofed stadium is the last hurdle and this is a monumental day in Tasmanian sport, as not only will it service AFL, it will service the economy, it will service other sports and the community.

"It could become a real mecca for Tasmania and hopefully it is a mecca for them to go to watch their own AFL team."