Nathan Broad

But while we're talking about the present and the future, we have to also talk about the past.

And the final pages of the Richmond storybook, the fairy tale, of three championships, three premierships in four years, the final pages are being turned and that book is almost closed because two absolute gladiators in yellow and black retired this year with Deion Presti and Nathan Broad stepping away from the club.

And as they call Deion Presti the meatball, he was the engine room that powered these dynasty teams.

Nathan Broad was a mature age pick that came in, became a three-time premiership player, locked down usually on other clubs, best offensive player, their best forward from week to week.

And again, with them gone, if I did the math right, there are only two players still remaining from the most recent premiership side, and that's Toby Dan Kervis and Tom Lynch.

at Punt Road that are still connections back to that premiership side.

You're lucky to get away with it.

Nathan Broad.

Let's move to the wings.

Yes.

If we see Sam Swickowski out there with his footy boots on running around, then maybe they have tried to twist his arm.

But yeah, I definitely got the sense that it's a new chapter for him and moving into 2019. to coaching, but the reason we're keen to talk about Sam Sukkowski is because he's one of those players who's made the move straight into coaching, alongside Dion Prestia, who joined Hawthorne as a development coach, and Nathan Broad, who joined Fremantle as a development coach.

It seems like a small number.

I haven't crunched the numbers on this demo, but what's your impression of, I guess, the landscape at the moment for players moving straight into coaching? Is it something that is attracting players at the moment?

Well, not everyone.

And look, the players who've come off massive wages in their last years of playing schmookie are genuinely shocked when they have conversations with clubs about the lack of funds available to them, even with great status as they transition from playing to whatever happens next in their lives.

I can see why Dion Press here and Nathan Broad have gone down the path.

And now they've been benefited by having multiple premierships beside their names as a pitching point.

That's great.

Nathan Broad.

That's just development.

But if he

added an O, it

would have been Ten Diamond Zongo.

See, you look at that decision, right, of bringing Nathan Broad on as a development coach versus Daniel Lloyd, Harry Cunningham, just saying, watch this space.

It's actually not a bad shout.

fresh faces at all from a playing point of view and also from a coaching point of view.

Nathan Broad comes in.

That's just development though, isn't it? And a couple of development coaches.

Tendai Mzungo is going to be promoted to a more senior assistant coaching role.

It took a while.

When they put Nathan Broad in, they maybe went too far.

So he is in the back pocket,

Nathan

I do think it'll be a better year next year.

Is there a greater endorsement of a coach than a player who's unfortunately just been delisted, singing his praises? And Nathan Broad was here last week who didn't get an opportunity.

He was half interested in playing at West Coast, didn't get an opportunity to both say, Mini is absolutely the man to take the club forward.

So, yeah, ringing endorsements.

So, yeah, I think they've made the right call there.

And then bringing Nathan Broad in as a development coach gives them a good coach, someone who wants to move into coaching and someone who I think will work with the young defenders really well.

But also for some IP, we forget the great career that Nathan Broad's had as a three-time premiership player and someone who's involved in a great system at Richmond.

So, yeah, I think they've got out of this difficult period quite well, Fremantle, over the off-season.

Schmooky, before we finish this episode, I had to bring up an article I saw of yours in the last couple of days ranking the 18 midfields in the competition ahead of the 2027 season.

And then Jeff Valentine is, uh, once again the head coach for Peel Thunder, uh, taking over from Adam Reid.

Sam Mayne, wearing the East Fremantle Colts winning coach is, is now going to be doing Peel's midfield, and Nathan Broad will be doing their backs.

So a little bit of movement there, Townie.

Well, it's a growth in- industry, assistant coaches, isn't it? I, I mean, how do players g- manage to play? There's so many, um, coaches there to hold their hand that you wonder how they, how they manage to survive every time they, they leave the club and go home all by themselves.