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David Keith Astbury (born 26 February 1991) is a former
Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...
er who played in three premierships over a 12-year career with the
Richmond Football Club The Richmond Football Club, nicknamed the Tigers, is an Australian rules football team playing in the Australian Football League (AFL). Between its inception in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond in 1885 and 1907, the club competed in the Victo ...
in the
Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling the laws of the gam ...
(AFL). Astbury was drafted by Richmond with the 35th pick overall in the 2009 national draft and made his debut in round 4 of the 2010 season. After an injury-affected start to his career that included just 24 AFL matches in his first five seasons, Astbury settled into a fullback and centre-half back role by 2016 and was a regular member of the club's senior side. He was a member of Richmond's three premiership sides in 2017, 2019 and 2020, and retired following the 2021 season having played 155 senior matches.


Early life and junior football

Astbury was raised on a wheat and canola farm in the Western
Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...
country town of
Tatyoon Tatyoon is a small town in the western region of Victoria. It is approximately west of the state's capital, Melbourne. At the 2021 Census, Tatyoon had a population of 130. The name comes from an Aboriginal word meaning "Water Catchment" The lo ...
. He played junior football with the Ararat Western Warriors in the Ararat & District Junior league and the Tatyoon Hawks in the Mininera and District Football League. Astbury played in two under-16s premierships during his time with Tatyoon. In 2007 he moved to
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
on a boarding program with
Caulfield Grammar School Caulfield Grammar School is an Independent school, independent, co-educational, Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican, International Baccalaureate, day school, day and boarding school, located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1881 as ...
. The following year he played four matches with the
North Ballarat Rebels The Greater Western Victoria Rebels is an Australian rules football club which plays in the NAB League, the statewide under-18s competition in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Initially known as the Ballarat Rebels and wearing green an ...
in the
TAC Cup The NAB League Boys (also referred to as simply the NAB League and formerly known as the TAC Cup) is an under-19 Australian rules football representative competition held in Australia. It is based on geographic regions throughout country Victo ...
while still a boarder in Melbourne. Astbury moved back home in 2009, taking the role of co-captain at the Rebels and playing a total of 10 games with the team. His best performance that year game in a match against the
Western Jets The Western Jets is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Victorian premier U19 competition, the NAB League, since its inception in 1992. The club have developmental squads in the U16, however much of the attention is towards its U ...
where he recorded 18 disposals, 12 marks and three goals while playing in the forward line. That year he also represented the Victorian Country region at the
2009 AFL Under 18 Championships The 2009 AFL Under-18 Championships was the 2009 series of the AFL Under 18 Championships, a state and territory-based Australian rules football competition which showcases the best junior footballers in Australia, primarily with the aim for the ...
where he held averages of 14 disposals and four marks per game. Astbury earned an invite to the national draft combine in
Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
that year, where he recorded a top-10 score in the kicking test. He was noted pre-draft for his work rate and endurance as well as his ability to play both as a key forward and key defender.


AFL career


2010 season

Astbury was drafted to with the club's third selection and the 35th pick overall in the 2009 AFL national draft. Astbury played his first match against AFL opponents in a
pre-season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of Se ...
game against in Launceston in February 2010. He then spent the early part of the regular season playing at reserves level with Richmond's
VFL The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...
affiliate . Astbury's AFL debut came in round 4, in a 55-point loss to . In that match he played as a forward, recording seven disposals, three tackles and an equal-team-high three goals. Astbury played three more matches at senior level but failed to kick a goal in any. He was omitted from the club's round 8 side before making a return the following week and kicking a goal in that round 9 loss to . By the later part of the season Astbury was playing primarily as a defender, having kicked just one more goal that year. After playing 13 consecutive matches Astbury had his season ended early, sent for hip surgery following round 21's loss to . He finished a promising first season with 17 matches played at AFL level.


2011 season

Despite migrating fully to the role of key defender that off-season, Astbury was in November 2010 assigned the number 12 guernsey worn by club goal-kicking legend and recently retired forward Matthew Richardson. He first wore it in pre-season matches in February 2011 before being selected to play at senior level in round 1's season-opening match against . Astbury played a further three matches at senior level before being omitted from Richmond's round 5 side to take on . He returned to senior level in round 12, but was involved in a collision with midfielder
Ben McGlynn Ben McGlynn (born 6 August 1985) is an Australian rules football coach and former player who played with the Hawthorn Football Club and Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League. He is currently an assistant coach at the St Kilda Football ...
early in the game. Astbury sustained a dislocated
patella The patella, also known as the kneecap, is a flat, rounded triangular bone which articulates with the femur (thigh bone) and covers and protects the anterior articular surface of the knee joint. The patella is found in many tetrapods, such as m ...
in the incident and did not return to the match, having failed to lodge an entry in any of the popularly recorded statistical categories. The resulting surgery revealed extensive damage to the
medial collateral ligament The medial collateral ligament (MCL), or tibial collateral ligament (TCL), is one of the four major ligaments of the knee. It is on the medial (inner) side of the knee joint in humans and other primates. Its primary function is to resist out ...
too. Efforts to repair the knee would keep him sidelined and unable to play another AFL match that season, having only featured in five to that point.


2012 season

In the early parts of the 2012 season Astbury remained ruled out of action, with a second surgery forcing him to prolong rehabilitation on the knee injury sustained the year prior. After nearly a full year in recovery Astbury finally made his return to competitive football in mid-May. He did so with the development side of VFL team Coburg, a full two levels below the AFL. After further matches in the Coburg seniors, Astbury earned a re-call to AFL football as a key-position forward in a round 22 match against . He kicked a goal in that match and again the next week when he played in the club's final match of the season. Astbury finished the year at full health and having played two matches at AFL level that year.


2013 season

Astbury begun the 2013 calendar in full-health and played in pre-season matches against the Indigenous All-Stars and Essendon in February and March respectively. Before the start of the season he sustained a foot injury however, and did not play in either of the first two weeks of the season. Astbury played limited minutes in the VFL the following week before missing another match with a knee complaint. As string of six straight matches at VFL level followed with Astbury impressing enough to be named as an AFL emergency in round 10. He earned his first match of the season at senior level a fortnight later, playing against at the MCG. Another senior match followed in round 13 but Astbury found himself substituted out of the game with a minor ankle injury He rehabilitated the injury at VFL level before earning another AFL match in round 19. In that match Astbury played a key shut down role on forward
Jack Gunston Jack Gunston (born 16 October 1991) is a professional Australian footballer who plays for the Brisbane Lions in the Australian Football League (AFL). Early life Gunston was raised in Melbourne in Beaumaris and attended Haileybury College, play ...
and earned himself a further two matches at senior level. More injury misfortune would befall him in the weeks that followed however, with further minor leg injuries keeping him from playing another match at either VFL or AFL level. Astbury finished the season having played five senior matches.


2014 season

For the first time in three years Astbury begun the 2014 season in the club's best-22 and by round 2 had already turned in a "standout" performance, having kept 's
Jarrad Waite Jarrad Waite (born 4 February 1983) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Carlton Football Club and North Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). AFL career Carlton (2003–2014) Born ...
to just one goal while also recording 10 marks and five rebound-50s of his own. In round 4 he impressed again, this time keeping forward
Travis Cloke Travis Cloke (born 5 March 1987) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Collingwood Football Club and in the Australian Football League (AFL). Cloke was drafted under the father-son rule by Collingwood in ...
goalless. Yet another starring performance came in round 6 where he kept 's
Jarryd Roughead Jarryd Roughead (born 23 January 1987) is an Australian rules football coach and former player. He is currently an assistant coach with the St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He played for the Hawthorn Football C ...
to one goal and was named by ''AFL Media'' as one of Richmond's best players that day. By the conclusion of round 8 it was clear Astbury was having the best season of his career to-date, a fact later confirmed when the club's best and fairest count revealed he was Richmond's second highest vote polling player to that point of the year. More injury troubles would await him however when in round 9 Astbury suffered another patella dislocation (this time in his left knee) while attempting to tackle midfielder
Jack Viney Jack Viney (born 13 April 1994) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). A midfielder, tall and weighing , Viney is capable of contributing as both an inside ...
in the third quarter of that match. Though he reset the dislocation himself while still on the field, he would again need surgery to fully repair the damage. He did not play another match at AFL level that season, finishing with nine total. Astbury did however return for a single game in the final match of the season with Richmond's stand-alone reserves side in the VFL.


2015 season

A full pre-season training program awaited Astbury in the lead-up to the 2015 season. Despite this, and though initially selected to play, Astbury withdrew from a pre-season match in February with knee soreness. He missed again in the following match of the series in March. Just days before he was due to line up in his club's round 1 side, Astbury was stung by a stingray while wading at a
Port Melbourne Port Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Melbourne and Port Phillip local government areas. Port Melbourne recorded a populatio ...
beach. Surgery was required to remove the barb that caused minor damage to his left foot and ankle. He missed the first two weeks of the season as a result of the injury, before making a return to AFL football in round 3. Astbury remained in the senior side for a further three matches including in round 5, where he was moved into the Richmond forward-line in the match's third quarter and kicked his first goal since 2012. He was relegated to VFL football after a poor performance in round 6 however and faced a hamstring strain in the following weeks that would restrict his ability to push for senior selection. Astbury played a dual role as defender and forward, doing so well as to come under consideration (though ultimately unsuccessful) for AFL selection as a forward in round 15. He was later named as an emergency in round 19 but could not earn final AFL selection again at any point that season. Astbury finished the year only having played four AFL matches, bringing his five-year total to just 24. At season's end Astbury became the subject of media speculation concerning a potential move to the . Media reports suggested he had been offered a four-year deal worth a reported $500,000 per season and the promise of greater playing time at AFL level. An initial offer that would have seen Richmond give up Astbury and their pick 31 in exchange for Brisbane's pick 17 was rejected by Brisbane according to a report by ''
The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...
''. Talks progressed so far that Astbury was confirmed to have traveled to Brisbane to meet club officials and complete a medical exam. By the middle of October a deal was reported to be almost complete, but a late period decision by Astbury to remain at Richmond saw him still at the club by the close of the trade deadline.


2016 season

Astbury underwent minor hip surgery in the lead-up to the 2016 season, but still managed what the ''
Herald Sun The ''Herald Sun'' is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia, published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Corp Australia, itself a subsidiary of the Murdoch owned News Corp. The ''Herald S ...
'' labelled a "brilliant" pre-season training campaign. With the move of veteran defender
Troy Chaplin Troy David Chaplin (born 23 February 1986) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Port Adelaide Football Club and Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He has served as the offensive ...
to a new forward-line role, Astbury was the natural replacement as a key defender alongside
All-Australian The All-Australian team is an all-star team of Australian rules football in Australia, Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. It represents a complete team, including an interchange bench, of the best-perf ...
Alex Rance Alex James Rance (born 9 October 1989) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Rance was a premiership player, five time All-Australian, a one time ...
in the Richmond defence. He played that role in the club's first pre-season match in February but missed a large portion of the game after sustaining ligament damage to his thumb. The injury would require surgery and forced Astbury to sit out the remainder of the pre-season series. He was back to full health by late March however, and earned selection to the club's AFL side in round 1. In round 4 Astbury suffered another injury, this time in the form of a rolled ankle that ended his night in the fourth quarter of that match. He did not miss a game as a result of the injury however, instead playing a further two matches at AFL level before being omitted form the club's round 7 side due to poor form. Astbury returned to senior football after three weeks away, recording 11 marks in a win over in the marquee
Dreamtime at the 'G The Dreamtime at the 'G is an annual Australian rules football match between Australian Football League clubs and . Since the 2007 season the match has been held annually on the Saturday night of the AFL's "Indigenous Round", also known as th ...
match. He did not miss another match that year, playing in each of the final 13 matches of the season. After 14 rounds Astbury led all Richmond players for average intercept marks per game (2.3) while placing 16th in the league for that same statistic. In round 15, he recorded a career-best 23 disposals in a match against . Five weeks later he set a new career-best for marks, taking 14 in his club's round 20 win over . By season's end Astbury had played in a total 19 matches, the most of any year of his career to-date. He earned an 11th-placed finished in the club best and fairest count that year, with his 27 votes placing him just one vote behind tenth placed
Brett Deledio Brett Edward Deledio (born 18 April 1987) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played 243 games over 12 seasons with the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL), and a further 32 matches over three ...
. During the off-season Astbury avoid the contract drama of the year previous, having quietly signed a new three-year deal to keep him at Richmond until the end of the 2019 season.


2017 season

Across the first two games of the 2017 season Astbury was a serviceable contributor to the Richmond defence. In round 3 though he was impressive in his own right, restricting reining
Coleman Medal The Coleman Medal is an Australian rules football award given annually to the Australian Football League (AFL) player who kicks the most goals in the home-and-away season. It is named after Essendon full-forward John Coleman, one of the most ...
ist Josh Kennedy For that performance he earned an honourable mention but ultimately went unselected in ''AFL Medias Team of the Week. Astbury led all Richmond players with 12 disposals to half time of round 4's match with
Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...
, finishing the game with 16 disposals and 11 marks. His form to that point was labelled by the ''
Herald Sun The ''Herald Sun'' is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia, published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Corp Australia, itself a subsidiary of the Murdoch owned News Corp. The ''Herald S ...
'' as "career-best" while Richmond's back-line ranked number one in the league for fewest points conceded. The following week Astbury become a point of discussion concerning umpiring when he was adjudged to have illegally rushed a behind while fumbling the ball in round 5's win over . His performance in round 9 was first-rate, recording an equal game-high four intercept marks as part of 10 total marks that saw him placed 20th in the league in that statistic so far that season. Another starring performance came in round 11 when Astbury restricted 's
Jarrad Waite Jarrad Waite (born 4 February 1983) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Carlton Football Club and North Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). AFL career Carlton (2003–2014) Born ...
to a single goal while recording 20 disposals and an equal team high eight intercepts of his own. He was one of six Richmond players recognised in the AFL Coaches Association award rankings for that match, recording 2 of a possible 10 votes. Astbury's assignment on Waite was part of a concerted effort by coach
Damien Hardwick Damien Patrick Hardwick (born 18 August 1972) is an Australian rules football coach and former player. He is the senior coach of the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL) since 2010, and has the longest continuous servi ...
to have him defend other teams' best key-forwards and allow
Alex Rance Alex James Rance (born 9 October 1989) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Rance was a premiership player, five time All-Australian, a one time ...
to play a more fluid offensive role. After 11 rounds of the season Astbury ranked sixth in the competition for intercept marks. Eight weeks later he had improved this position, now ranking fourth in the league for average marks, intercept marks and intercept possession while also ranking third for lowest defensive on-on-one loss percentage (20 per cent). Astbury passed his career-best games played mark in round 21, having not missed a game in 2017. In early August the Herald Sun labelled him as a "legitimate star" on the back of his development that season. At the end of the 2017 home and away season Astbury ranked eighth in the league for total marks recorded that season with 150 across his 22 matches. He also ranked equal 19th with his 106 one percenters. September saw Astbury play in the first final of his career, keeping Tom Hawkins to just one goal in a qualifying final victory over . In the preliminary final that followed, Astbury managed to keep 's
Jonathon Patton Jonathon Patton (born 20 May 1993) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Greater Western Sydney Giants and Hawthorn Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL) Patton was taken with first selection i ...
to one goal, helping push Richmond to a 36-point victory and their first grand final in 35 years. In the
2017 AFL Grand Final The 2017 AFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Adelaide Football Club and the Richmond Football Club at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 30 September 2017. It was the 122nd annual AFL Grand Final, grand fina ...
Astbury was given the task of restricting 's Taylor Walker, which he did by keeping the Crows captain goalless until late in the match when the game was already out of reach. The Herald Sun ranked him the 11th best player of all 44 participants in the match that saw Astbury an AFL premiership player. Across the season and finals series Astbury ranked number eighth in the league for intercepts, ninth for marks and 20th for one-percenters in 2017. As part of his premiership success, Astbury was awarded life membership at Richmond.


2018 season

Astbury underwent minor shoulder surgery immediately following the end of the 2017 finals series, though still managed to complete a mostly-full training program in the lead-in to the 2018 season. He was back to full health in time for the club's first pre-season match of 2018, but suffered a head knock and a concussion during the match and played only limited game-time as a result. The effects of the concussion were minimal however as he managed to play in the team's second and final pre-season match in March as well as in the season opening match against later that month. In round 2 Astbury earned negative attention when he mis-kicked the ball in defence and allowed a goal that would quash Richmond's fourth-quarter comeback. He made amends the following week, earning selection to ''AFL Medias Team of the Week for his efforts in Richmond's 13-point victory over . Astbury repeated the accolade in round 4, earning another Team of the Week selection as well as three votes in the
AFL Coaches Association The AFL Coaches Association (AFLCA) is the representative body for Australian Football League coaches. History The AFLCA was founded in 2002, and as of 2015 had 178 members. Every year annually since 2003, the AFLCA has released a set of awards ...
's award for his 20 disposal and six mark game against the . After four rounds Astbury ranked second in the league for most goals conceded to a direct-opponent with 13. In contrast he was placed highly in a number of positive statistics, ranking 12th for intercepts, 17th for marks and 20th for rebound 50s across all players in the league. In round 5 he set a new career-best with seven rebound-50s in a win over . Two weeks later he equaled a previous career-best when he recorded 14 marks in the club's 77-point round 7 victory over . For that performance he earned his third Team of the Week selection of the year. To the mid-point of the season Astbury ranked 13th in the league for intercepts and 17th for total marks. Astbury played his 50th consecutive match in round 12, but he also sustained a significant ankle injury in that loss to . Though he played out the match on that injury, Astbury was forced to miss the following week's match with to rehabilitate the ankle before returning in round 15 against . During that match he was engaged in misconduct against opposition forward
Tom McCartin Tom McCartin (born 30 December 1999) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League (AFL). He is a key defender. He made his debut in round 8 of the 2018 AFL season, 2018 season agai ...
that saw him attract a $1,500 fine from the AFL's Match Review Officer. Astbury played his 100th career match in round 17, a loss to the at
Spotless Stadium Sydney Showground Stadium (Known commercially as GIANTS Stadium during the AFL Season) is a sports and events stadium located at the Sydney Showground in Sydney Olympic Park. It hosted the baseball events for the 2000 Summer Olympics. The Show ...
in
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
. At that time he was labelled as "in the conversations" for
All-Australian The All-Australian team is an all-star team of Australian rules football in Australia, Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. It represents a complete team, including an interchange bench, of the best-perf ...
honours by one of the award's selectors,
Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...
commentator and former Richmond star Matthew Richardson. Two weeks later he was lauded by the ''ABC'' and received four Coaches Association Award votes after posting a season-best 21 disposals and a match-high 11 intercepts in Richmond's round 19 win over . Astbury was rested for the round 22 match with due to Achilles soreness but returned to play in the club's final match of the home and away season the following week. In that match he received a fine for engaging in misconduct against player Fergus Greene. At the conclusion of the regular season Richmond had broken the league record for intercept marks in a season, with Astbury ranked third at Richmond in that statistic. In the club's qualifying final win over , Astbury recorded eight one percenters and was labelled "almost impassable" by ''AFL Media'' despite recording a season-low six disposals. He was the subject of significant media attention in the lead-up to the preliminary final two weeks later, after reports emerged that he contracted the
common cold The common cold or the cold is a viral infectious disease of the upper respiratory tract that primarily affects the respiratory mucosa of the nose, throat, sinuses, and larynx. Signs and symptoms may appear fewer than two days after exposu ...
and was admitted to hospital for an intravenous drip just two days before that match. He was ultimately ruled fit to play in that match against and did so primarily in defence with a later stint in the forward line when Richmond faced a significant half time scoring deficit. Astbury's performance in that shock knock-out loss was labelled by ''AFL Media'' as "lethargic and out of sorts". He finished the year having played in 22 matches and placed 12th in the club's best and fairest count.


2019 season

In the 2019 pre-season Astbury was labelled by ''AFL Media'' as one of the league's two most underrated defenders along with teammate
Dylan Grimes Dylan Grimes (born 16 July 1991) is an Australian rules footballer who plays for the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He is a three-time premiership player with the club, winning in 2017, 2019 and 2020. In 2019 ...
, with Astbury being noted for his ability to directly defend opposition key forwards and free his backline group to play a more attacking style. In February and March, Astbury made appearances in each of the club's two pre-season matches before recording nine disposals in round 1's season-opening match against . In that match, Astbury's backline teammate and five time All-Australian
Alex Rance Alex James Rance (born 9 October 1989) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Rance was a premiership player, five time All-Australian, a one time ...
would suffer a season-ending torn ACL that left Astbury and the other members of the backline group to assume greater roles for the remainder of the year. The defence struggled under the task in early weeks, conceding 36 goals over a two-week stretch before stabilising with a win over in round 4 in which Astbury contributed eight marks. Astbury suffered an ankle injury in the second quarter of round 6's win over , playing out the match but ultimately being ruled out for the following week's match against the in which Richmond's defence conceded nine contested marks to Bulldogs forward
Aaron Naughton Aaron Naughton (born 30 November 1999) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Western Bulldogs in the Australian Football League (AFL). Standing at 195 cm, Naughton is considered a key-position player who is renowned for ...
. He returned after just one week out, averaging 16.3 disposals over the next four games to the end of round 11. In the final match of that run he managed his first goal since the 2015 season. A minor hamstring injury suffered while training would rule Astbury out for two matches from round 12 until the end of the club's bye, before making his return in round 15. Two weeks later, Astbury signed a new two-year contract extension that would see him tied to the club until the end of the 2021 season. In round 17, Astbury received one vote in the coaches association player of the year award as Richmond's equal fourth-best afield in a win over . He bettered that the following week, earning four votes in a win over at the
MCG The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as "The 'G", is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadium in the Southern Hem ...
in which he recorded 16 disposals, four rebound-50s and an equal game-high nine intercept possessions. In round 20, Astbury attracted a $2000 fine from the AFL's match review officer for striking 's Harrison Petty in that win. After nine straight wins to finish the home and away season, Astbury contributed eight marks in a qualifying final victory over the at
The Gabba The Brisbane Cricket Ground, commonly known as the Gabba, is a major sports stadium in Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia. The nickname Gabba derives from the suburb of Woolloongabba, in which it is located. Over the years, the Gab ...
. That earned the club a home preliminary final against , who in round 12 had beaten an Astbury-less Richmond side by 67 points. Astbury's addition, along with the suspension of Geelong forward Tom Hawkins provided a key difference, with Richmond winning through to a grand final match up against . To that point, Astbury ranked eight in the league for defensive one-on-one wins, winning 40 per cent of his contests. In the
grand final Primarily in Australian sports, a grand final (sometimes colloquially abbreviated to "grannie") is a game that decides a sports league's premiership (or championship) winning team, i.e. the conclusive game of a finals (or play-off) series. Sy ...
, Astbury led a Richmond defence that kept the Giants to 25 points, their lowest score in the club's eight-year history and the lowest score by any team in a VFL/AFL grand final since 1960. He kept his various direct opponents disposal-less over the length of the match, including his primary opponent
Jeremy Finlayson Jeremy Finlayson (born 9 February 1996) is a professional Australian rules footballer who plays for the Port Adelaide Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL), having been initially drafted to . He is now playing for Port Adelai ...
, who finished the match with a single disposal, gathered while being covered by one of Astbury's Richmond teammates. After a season that included 22 matches and a second AFL premiership in three seasons, Astbury earned ninth place in the club's best and fairest award.


2020 season

Astbury's importance to the Richmond backline was confirmed with the shock off-season retirement of fellow defender
Alex Rance Alex James Rance (born 9 October 1989) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Rance was a premiership player, five time All-Australian, a one time ...
in December 2019. He demonstrated this with strong showings in each of the club's two pre-season matches in March before contributing 14 disposals in round 1's win over . The match was played under extraordinary conditions, the first of what had been announced would be a shortened 17-round season imposed on the league as a result of the rapid progression of the
coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
into Australia. Due to public health prohibitions on large gatherings, matches that season were to be played without crowds in attendance and with quarter lengths reduced by one fifth in order to reduce the physical load on players who would be expected to play multiple matches with short breaks in the second half of the year owing to the likelihood of an extended break in play that season. Just three days later, the AFL Commission suspended the season after multiple states enforced quarantine conditions on their borders that effectively ruled out the possibility of continuing the season as planned. After an 11-week hiatus, Astbury contributed 14 disposals and six marks in a round 2 draw with when the season resumed in early-June. In a loss to two weeks later, Astbury suffered a
partial dislocation In materials science, a partial dislocation is a decomposed form of dislocation that occurs within a crystalline material. An ''extended dislocation'' is a dislocation that has dissociated into a pair of partial dislocations. The vector sum of t ...
of the
patella The patella, also known as the kneecap, is a flat, rounded triangular bone which articulates with the femur (thigh bone) and covers and protects the anterior articular surface of the knee joint. The patella is found in many tetrapods, such as m ...
bone in his knee. Though he was able to play out the match, scans later revealed damaged cartilage around the knee that would require surgery to correct and that would see him ruled out for an estimated four to five weeks. Astbury moved to the Gold Coast with the main playing group to rehabilitate the injury in early-July, relocating due to a virus outbreak in Melbourne. Astbury progressed ahead of schedule during July and was named by coach Damien Hardwick as likely to return for the club's round 8 match, before complications that week forced him into a slower recovery. He underwent a further arthroscopy in early August, revising out the timetable for his return to at least a further three weeks. He finally returned to match-play in a reserves-grade scrimmage match in mid-September, before earning a recall to AFL level one week later in the club's final match of the regular season. He recorded 14 disposals and a game-high nine intercepts in that round 18 win over , and held his place into the club's finals series campaign. Astbury was similarly impressive in the opening week of the finals, taking seven marks in a qualifying loss to the . The loss would drive Richmond to structural change however, with Astbury assuming the role of relief ruck in the club's follow-up semi-final win over . He fared ably in the match, and reprised the role in a preliminary final win over the following week. Astbury became a three-time premiership player the following week, helping his side to a 31-point victory over in the
grand final Primarily in Australian sports, a grand final (sometimes colloquially abbreviated to "grannie") is a game that decides a sports league's premiership (or championship) winning team, i.e. the conclusive game of a finals (or play-off) series. Sy ...
. Though he also began that match as a relief ruck, he was most impactful when structural changes mid-match forced him back into defence, where he kept Tom Hawkins to just one goal.


2021 season

Astbury played his first football of 2021 in the club's unofficial pre-season match against in February, before featuring in the club's sole official pre-season match against in early March. He attracted a $2000 fine for an off-the-ball elbow to 's
Lachie Plowman Lachie Plowman (born 11 September 1994) is an Australian rules footballer who plays for the Carlton Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Plowman originated in the Macedon Ranges from Sacred Heart College, Kyneton. In 2011 a ...
in round 1, during a down performance that included just nine disposals. Astbury played as a defender and the team's second ruck in that match and across the first four rounds of the season, before settling into a much more heavily backline-focused role with only the occasional ruck contest as of round 5. He played an important role in negating
Giants A giant is a being of human appearance, sometimes of prodigious size and strength, common in folklore. Giant(s) or The Giant(s) may also refer to: Mythology and religion *Giants (Greek mythology) *Jötunn, a Germanic term often translated as 'gi ...
forward
Jesse Hogan Jesse Hogan (born 12 February 1995) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Greater Western Sydney Giants in the Australian Football League (AFL). A key forward, Hogan is tall and weighs . He was a standout basketballer ...
in the second half of round 9's win over , but was soon after recognised by AFL statistical partner Campion Data as showing a 15% reduction in ranking points to the previous year, the second biggest drop of any Richmond player to that point of the season. Astbury was an injury omission from the club's round 11 match against , with the club revealing he had been managing persistent Achilles soreness during the opening months of the season and was experiencing an acute flare up that would rule him out from selection. He made his return six weeks later in round 16's loss to the , before playing his 150th AFL match the following week against . Astbury suffered an ankle injury in round 17's win over the which put him in some doubt for the following week, though he was ultimately able to play that match and each of the following four before missing round 22 as a late exclusion with a quad injury. In the days that followed, Astbury announced he would retire at season's end. He returned to fitness to feature in the club's year-ending round 23 draw with , labeled by ''The Age'' as one of his side's best players in the match after a 20-disposal and 13-mark performance in what was his final match. Astbury was later awarded the Francis Bourke Award at the club's best and fairest night, as the player that most embodies the club's key values. In total, Astbury's career spanned 12 years and included 155 AFL games and three AFL premierships.


Player profile

Astbury played as a key position defender, most often tasked with directly defending the opposition's tallest forward. His strengths were in defensive positioning and one-on-one marking. He played a dual role as key forward and defender in his junior years and in his first AFL season, and in 2020 he helped Richmond to a premiership win by playing as a relief ruck for most of the finals series. Astbury was an important but under-recognised part of Richmond's defensive unit during its premiership run in the late 2010s, alongside
All-Australian The All-Australian team is an all-star team of Australian rules football in Australia, Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. It represents a complete team, including an interchange bench, of the best-perf ...
s
Alex Rance Alex James Rance (born 9 October 1989) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Rance was a premiership player, five time All-Australian, a one time ...
and
Dylan Grimes Dylan Grimes (born 16 July 1991) is an Australian rules footballer who plays for the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He is a three-time premiership player with the club, winning in 2017, 2019 and 2020. In 2019 ...
. Astbury's ability to negate opposition tall-forwards was cited retrospectively as an important factor in allowing Rance and Grimes to play their lauded roles as interceptors.


AFL playing statistics

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2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
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2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
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2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
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2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
, style="text-align:center;", , 12 , , 8 , , 0 , , 0 , , 71 , , 37 , , 108 , , 42 , , 15 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 8.9 , , 4.6 , , 13.5 , , 5.3 , , 1.9 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,
2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
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2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
, style="text-align:center;", , 12 , , 19 , , 0 , , 1 , , 156 , , 101 , , 257 , , 127 , , 25 , , 0.0 , , 0.1 , , 8.2 , , 5.3 , , 13.5 , , 6.7 , , 1.3 , - , scope=row bgcolor=F0E68C ,
2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
# , style="text-align:center;", , 12 , , 25 , , 0 , , 0 , , 221 , , 154 , , 375 , , 159 , , 36 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 8.8 , , 6.2 , , 15.0 , , 6.4 , , 1.4 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,
2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
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2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
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2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
# , style="text-align:center;", , 12 , , 9 , , 0 , , 0 , , 73 , , 38 , , 111 , , 39 , , 17 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 8.1 , , 4.2 , , 12.3 , , 4.3 , , 1.9 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,
2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...
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Honours and achievements

Team * 3× AFL premiership player ():
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,
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
,
2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
*
McClelland Trophy The McClelland Trophy is an Australian rules football trophy which has been awarded each year since 1951 by the Australian Football League (known prior to 1990 as the Victorian Football League) to the best-performing club in the home-and-away sea ...
():
2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
Junior *North Ballarat Rebels co-captain: 2009


Personal life

Astbury's mother Kate was an unsuccessful candidate for Labor party pre-selection for the Victorian electoral seat of
Ripon Ripon () is a cathedral city in the Borough of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the city ...
in 2017. Astbury traveled to
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
in the summer before the 2014 season, one of nine Richmond players making a cultural-exchange trip as part of a project to work with disadvantaged kids that was developed by researchers at the
Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology RMIT University, officially the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology,, section 4(b) is a public research university in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1887 by Francis Ormond, RMIT began as a night school offering classes in art, scienc ...
. Outside of football he has studied an engineering degree at
Swinburne University Swinburne University of Technology (often simply called Swinburne) is a public research university based in Melbourne, Australia. It was founded in 1908 as the Eastern Suburbs Technical College by George Swinburne to serve those without access t ...
. Astbury owns a property in his home town of Tatyoon.


References


External links

*
David Astbury' statistics
from Footy Wire {{DEFAULTSORT:Astbury, David 1991 births Living people Richmond Football Club players Richmond Football Club Premiership players Coburg Football Club players People educated at Caulfield Grammar School Australian rules footballers from Victoria (Australia) Greater Western Victoria Rebels players Three-time VFL/AFL Premiership players