Richard Osborne (born 16 June 1964) is a retired

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 enjoyed a lengthy career in the

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 ...

AFL AFL may refer to: Sports * American Football League (AFL), a name shared by several separate and unrelated professional American football leagues: ** American Football League (1926) (a.k.a. "AFL I"), first rival of the National Football Leagu ...

. He played a total of 283 games in 17 seasons, and played with four clubs, as well as representing Victoria 7 times in interstate competition. Originally from Bulleen/Templestowe, he arrived at

Fitzroy Fitzroy or FitzRoy may refer to: People As a given name *Several members of the Somerset family (Dukes of Beaufort) have this as a middle-name: **FitzRoy Somerset, 1st Baron Raglan (1788–1855) ** Henry Charles FitzRoy Somerset, 8th Duke of Beau ...

and made his senior debut in 1982 as a 17-year-old. Beginning in the forward line as an understudy to

Bernie Quinlan Bernard Francis Quinlan (born 21 July 1951) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Footscray Football Club and Fitzroy Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL). One of a handful of players to have won a Brownlow ...

, he would go on to become Fitzroy's leading goalkicker five times, including four consecutive seasons between 1986 and 1989, with feats of 60 goals on each occasion. He was made captain in 1991 for one season. At the end of the 1992 season, after 187 games and 411 goals with the Lions, Osborne indicated to Fitzroy that he wanted to leave, with a move to

Essendon Essendon may refer to: Australia *Electoral district of Essendon *Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington *Essendon, Victoria **Essendon railway station **Essendon Airport *Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League United King ...

the most likely result. Fitzroy delisted him, however, and in the pre-season draft he went on to become the No.1 pick, and began a short-lived 16-game career at

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 ...

. He suffered a severe head injury, being taken off the ground in an

ambulance An ambulance is a medically equipped vehicle which transports patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient during the transport. Ambulances are used to respond to medi ...

, but surprisingly returned to the field just three weeks later. In Round 13, Osborne kicked ten goals in the club's only win for the entire year, against .Swans break through
''The Age'', 27 June 1993 After just one season at the Swans, he moved to Footscray in 1994. In March 1994, during the pre-season, the Western Bulldogs released Osborne to let him participate in an

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

trial in the United States; however, Osborne's trial was unsuccessful and he returned to Australia. He played 51 games there, including winning the club leading goalkicker award in 1995. At the end of 1996, Osborne changed clubs yet again, this time to Collingwood, where he stayed from 1997 until 1998. He managed 29 games in the two seasons at his final club, playing in a different role, half-back, where for most of his career he had predominantly been a forward. In 1999, he was a

boundary rider Boundary rider is a long-established (1864) Australasian term for a cattle or sheep station employee whose duties entail a regular tour (by horse, camel or motor vehicle) of the outer perimeter (boundary) of the property, checking condition of f ...

for the

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during the finals series, and continued that role until Seven lost the rights to

coverage in 2001. In 1998, Osborne released his autobiography, ''Ossie Rules'', co-written with Michael Hyde. On 6 November 2009, it was announced he would coach the Monash Gryphons in Division 4 of the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA) in 2010. He coached the side to a near-perfect 15–1 season and the club's first ever premiership and promotion to Division 3.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Osborne, Richard 1964 births Australian rules footballers from Victoria (Australia) Collingwood Football Club players Fitzroy Football Club players Living people Sydney Swans players Western Bulldogs players Victorian State of Origin players Australian rules football coaches Australia international rules football team players