Robert Peter Rose (6 February 1952 – 12 May 1999) was an Australian sportsman who played

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 ...

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 ...

and first-class cricket during the 1970s. Following a car crash in 1974 he became a quadriplegic.

Early years

Rose was born into a famous sporting family, his father Bob was a Copeland Trophy winning footballer with, and coach of, Collingwood and a member of the

Australian Football Hall of Fame The Australian Football Hall of Fame was established in 1996, the Centenary year of the Australian Football League, to help recognise the contributions made to the sport of Australian rules football by players, umpires, media personalities, coa ...

while his uncles Kevin, Ralph and Bill also played for Collingwood. Robert went to school at Haileybury College from where he was recruited to the Collingwood Football Club.

Football career

He made his VFL debut for Collingwood in the 1970 season and played four games that year. A utility, Rose established himself in the side in 1971 and appeared in 16 games to help the Magpies makes the finals. He struggled to hold his place in the side the following year and in 1973 crossed to Footscray.

Cricket career

Rose was also a talented cricketer and played as a right-handed middle order batsman for Victoria. He was a regular in their 1972/73 and 1973/74 Sheffield Shield teams and from 19 first-class games managed 981 runs at 30.65. His only century was an innings of 118 not out which he made in the first innings of a Shield game against Queensland at the Brisbane Cricket Ground, following it up with 88 in the second. Another career highlight was when he scored 67 against New Zealand who were touring the country. He scored 94 in a 214 run partnership with Paul Sheahan in 1972–73. In 1973–74, a season when the Test selectors were trialling several young players (such as Ian Davis), his name was mentioned as a Test prospect.

Car crash

Rose was involved in a serious car crash on 14 February 1974 on the Western Highway about 70 kilometres west of Melbourne. He and two other passengers in his car were injured when the vehicle lost control in loose gravel. The crash left him a quadriplegic. At the time he and his wife had a nine-month-old daughter. He was a drinks waiter at the Gabba Test during the 1975–76 season to promote the National Paraplegic and Quadriplegic Games. He died in May 1999 from complications following surgery to repair a twisted bowel. The Robert Rose Foundation, for Victorians with spinal cord injuries, was named in his honour.

Robert Rose Cup

Since the

2000 AFL season The 2000 AFL season was the 104th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season featured six ...

, Collingwood and the Western Bulldogs have played annually for the Robert Rose Cup. The Cup was named in honour of Robert's contribution to sport and more importantly to raise funds for the Robert Rose Foundation.

References

External links

The Robert Rose Foundation
* *

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rose, Robert 1952 births 1999 deaths People from Collingwood, Victoria Collingwood Football Club players Western Bulldogs players Australian cricketers People educated at Haileybury (Melbourne) People with tetraplegia Australian rules footballers from Melbourne Cricketers from Melbourne Victoria cricketers