The hysteria whipped up by Kevin Sheedy's decision to vie for the Richmond job has not distracted incumbent coach Jade Rawlings.

It seems he's got enough to worry about right now.

Like trying to ensure his rebuilding side does not suffer any more mental scars from a daunting AFL clash with in-form Adelaide at the Gold Coast on Saturday night.

The Crows are flying high with five straight wins and have made it clear they will not be on the tourist strip for a holiday, with coach Neil Craig dismissing any thought of complacency on Friday.

It's hardly music to the ears of Rawlings as he works hard to motivate a team still smarting from last round's 56 point thumping by St Kilda - a game in which they went scoreless for 77 minutes.

Yet Rawlings has probably picked the best time to fly to the Gold Coast after Sheedy-mania broke out in Melbourne.

The former Essendon premiership coach has put his hand up for the Tigers gig after a campaign started by fellow Richmond legend Kevin Bartlett.

But Rawlings said on the Gold Coast on Friday: "There's going to be that speculation.

"Many people are going to be putting their hands up for it.

"Some will be driven through the media, some through the application process.

"The club will stick to their process - the best person will get the job."

Asked what the club said to him about retaining the reins next season, Rawlings said: "Nothing".

If Rawlings was thrown by all the speculation, he wasn't showing it on Friday.

"Not really. This industry is perception based," he said.

"A lot of stories can be built up through the media.

"Others use the media as forums to put themselves out there.

"I don't get distracted by that, the players don't.

"If it continues for the rest of the year with certain names being put up, maybe it might do but I haven't been affected by it."

Things were so much different the last time Richmond were on the Gold Coast for a 2009 pre-season game.

They comfortably beat the Brisbane Lions and then-coach Terry Wallace looked relaxed and was all smiles.

"Certainly a lot has happened since then," Rawlings laughed.

"But I have certainly enjoyed my role.

"We had two weeks to hang off the joys of winning a game of league footy (against West Coast in his first game as coach) but back to reality with the loss against St Kilda.

"I think we are in better shape to deal with that (Saints) type of pressure if it comes up again."

Asked what were the lessons learned from the Saints game, Rawlings laughed: "You can't afford not to score in two quarters."

The Crows showdown marks the first time Richmond have played a regular season game on the tourist strip since 1991.

They have a lousy record against Adelaide, winning just one of their last 13 games.

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