Neil Allen Balme (born 15 January 1952) 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 for 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

Victorian Football League 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 ...

(VFL), as well as for the

Subiaco Football Club The Subiaco Football Club, nicknamed the Lions and known before 1973 as the ''Maroons'', is an Australian rules football club in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). It was founded in 1896, and admitted to the WAF ...

in the

Western Australian National Football League The West Australian Football League (WAFL) is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The league currently consists of ten teams, which play each other in a 20-round season usually lasting from March to September, ...

(WANFL) and the

Norwood Football Club Norwood Football Club, nicknamed the Redlegs, is an Australian rules football club competing in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) in the state of South Australia. Its home ground is Coopers Stadium (Norwood Oval), which is ...

in the

South Australian National Football League The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport. Originally formed as the ...

(SANFL). Throughout his involvement in football, as a player, coach and administrator, Balme has experienced premiership success across a number of clubs.

Playing career

Balme was one of three brothers, the others being

Ian Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, derived from the Hebrew given name (Yohanan, ') and corresponding to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. It is a popular name in Sc ...

and Craig, to play League football. As a player, Balme was one of football's wild men, a man mountain who often threw his weight around resulting in many tribunal appearances. But he was also a skilled, thoughtful footballer who could take a strong, contested mark and boot the ball long distances. After retiring, he built a reputation as a football coach and later administrator that highlighted his innovative thinking about the game. Balme played his junior football with Wembley Athletic Club, after leaving Mount Pleasant Amateurs, before transferring to

Western Australian Football League The West Australian Football League (WAFL) is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The league currently consists of ten teams, which play each other in a 20-round season usually lasting from March to September, ...

(WAFL) club Subiaco in 1968. Aged just 16, Balme created a huge impression with a strong performance in the ruck against future

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 ...

r Graham "Polly" Farmer in a game against

West Perth Football Club The West Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Falcons, is an Australian rules football club located in Joondalup, Western Australia. West Perth competes in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW) and is the oldest exis ...

. In January 1969, he moved to Melbourne with his family. He was quickly enticed to sign with Richmond along with his older brother Ian Balme. It was a riches back to rags situation after the move. The Tigers believed that the youngster needed some rounding to his still raw game. Balme found himself playing at thirds (under 19) level with the Tigers. At season's end, he played in the team's third consecutive premiership under famous junior coach,

Ray Jordon Raymond Clarence "Slug" Jordon (17 February 1937 – 13 August 2012) was an Australian first-class cricketer who represented Victoria in the Sheffield Shield and toured with the Australian national cricket team. He was also a successful Au ...

. In

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli intensity of X (''Extrem ...

, Balme continued his development with the Tiger reserves, and broke through for three senior games late in the year. At this point, Richmond were in the process of generational change in the team after two premierships in the late 1960s. The club demanded strong, vigorous ruck players and identified the potential in Balme to continue the tradition. He was a team regular in

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

as a forward/relief ruckman and performed well on the big stage during the Tigers' finals matches. Balme stood out with his height, big physique, long, flowing hair and penchant for throwing his weight around. For

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...

, the club recruited another player in a similar mould in Carlton's

Ricky McLean Roderick "Ricky" McLean (born 8 November 1947) is a former Australian rules football player who played in the VFL between 1966 and 1971 for the Carlton Football Club and between 1972 and 1974 and again in 1976 for the Richmond Football Club. M ...

, who played next to Balme at full forward. The duo booted a combined total of 110 goals for the season and created terror among opposing defenders with their vigorous approach to the game. Balme was less effective in the finals, saving his best game for 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 ...

when he booted five goals in a losing performance against Carlton. He also provided several goals for teammates with intelligent tap-ons, hit outs and shepherds, an under-emphasised aspect of his game.

Twelve months later Twelve or 12 may refer to: * 12 (number) * December, the twelfth and final month of the year Years * 12 BC * AD 12 * 1912 * 2012 Film * ''Twelve'' (2010 film), based on the 2002 novel * ''12'' (2007 film), by Russian director and actor Nikita ...

, Balme and his teammates fronted the same opposition in the

1973 VFL Grand Final The 1973 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between and at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 29 September 1973. It was the 76th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League (VFL), staged to determine the premi ...

, determined to avenge their shock loss. Richmond started well, and in the second quarter began to dominate the game. Balme instigated two incidents during this period that remain controversial to this day. Firstly, he threw a round arm punch into the jaw of his opponent, Carlton full back

Geoff Southby Geoff Southby (born 27 October 1950) is a former Australian rules footballer in the (then) Victorian Football League (VFL). An attacking full-back who ran hard from defence and stopped the best full-forwards, Southby was a key contributor to C ...

. Although Southby was able to regain his feet after slumping to the ground, he had severe concussion and was replaced by a reserve at half time. Minutes later, Balme launched a flurry of punches at Carlton's

Vin Waite Vincent Waite (26 February 1949 – 5 July 2003) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Carlton in the VFL. His son Jarrad followed in his footsteps and started his football career with Carlton, being drafted under the father-son ...

during a scramble for the ball in the Richmond goalsquare. This sparked a small melee as the two teams converged on Balme and Waite. The umpire had a good sight of the incident and reported Balme, who was later suspended. It mattered little to the Tigers, who went on to win the game by five goals and annexe their third flag in seven years. But the club didn't escape criticism that they planned the two incidents before the game. Richmond players and officials have always defended Balme's actions, claiming that there was no way Balme premeditated his attacks on the Carlton players. After serving his suspension early the following season, Balme returned to the side and was one of the driving forces behind the Tigers' performance in finishing on top of the ladder. He played well in the finals and aged 22 was a

premiership player This page is a complete chronological listing of VFL/AFL premiers. The Australian Football League (AFL), known as the Victorian Football League (VFL) until 1990, is the elite national competition in men's Australian rules football. The inaugur ...

for the second time. Balme confirmed his status as a big-game performer in the 1975 finals, when Richmond finished third. By now, Balme was at the peak of his game and had a real presence on the field. Although, at 193 cm, he was often conceding height to other ruckman, he was surprisingly mobile and agile and never beaten in a one-on-one physical confrontation. Richmond then lost a number of ruckman, allowing Balme to play more football on the ball and he was appointed vice captain of the club for the

1976 VFL season The 1976 VFL season was the 80th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 3 April until 25 September, and comprised a 22 ...

. Balme had his best-ever season in

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

, finishing second in Richmond's Best and Fairest award, the

Jack Dyer Medal The Jack Dyer Medal is an Australian rules football award given each season to the player or players adjudged best and fairest for the Richmond Football Club. The award is now named in honour of Jack Dyer, a champion ruckman who won the award ...

, and was chosen to play for his native Western Australia in the first state of origin match in October. Unfortunately, his finals campaign was hindered by a late season suspension, causing him to miss the first week of the finals. The following week he returned, only to be stymied by his North Melbourne opposition, who made a last-minute switch to his opponent that left Balme and his teammates off-guard. Richmond lost the match convincingly and were eliminated. After a solid season in

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

, Balme's career suddenly curtailed the following year. He had missed just seven games in the preceding four seasons, but suffered his first major injury when he hurt his knee. Restricted to just two games for the year and usurped as first ruckman at Richmond by Mark Lee, Balme shocked the club when he accepted life membership and then retired from the game, aged only 27. Balme then shifted to

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, where he was snapped up by

(SANFL) club Norwood as coach.

Coaching career

Balme's stint at Norwood lasted eleven seasons during which his team never missed the finals. They won premierships in 1982 and 1984, earning Balme an excellent reputation and several overtures to return to Victoria and coach. Richmond were among the suitors for his talents. But Balme felt that the game was stagnating in its home state, dragged down by an emphasis on negativity and physicality. He encouraged a fast, open and skilful passing game that he believed was the future of the code. In 1991, Balme left Norwood and became the inaugural coach of the new

Woodville-West Torrens Football Club Woodville-West Torrens Football Club is an Australian rules football club playing in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL). It was formed in 1990 from an amalgamation of the neighbouring Woodville and West Torrens football cl ...

, formed from the merger of Woodville and West Torrens at the end of 1990. His success there proved that a merged entity could work at a time when AFL clubs were facing the prospect of merger to stay viable in the new, fully professional era. Eventually, he succumbed to the lure of coaching in the AFL and was appointed to lead

Melbourne Football Club The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed the Demons, is a professional Australian rules football club that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. It is based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, ...

for the

1993 AFL season The 1993 AFL season was the 97th 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 fifte ...

. Balme's persistence with a strategic, high-possession, low-impact game plan earned both praise and ridicule. When the style succeeded it was attractive and hard to counter. However, when broken down by intense tackling, the players (and the coach) could look foolish and inept. Melbourne made it all way to the preliminary final in

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...

, but struggled thereafter. Melbourne's poor record from 1995 on was due in part to injury to stars including

Garry Lyon Garry Peter Lyon (born 13 September 1967) is a former professional Australian rules football player and was captain of the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Since his retirement from football, he has been mai ...

, David Schwarz, and Stephen Tingay. Balme's reasoned, personable style and his insistence on player self-empowerment made him very media-friendly, but some questioned whether he was suited to coaching in the AFL. Balme and his players were caught in the turmoil surrounding the club's proposal to merge with

Hawthorn Football Club The Hawthorn Football Club, nicknamed the Hawks, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Mulgrave, Victoria, that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL). The club was founded in 1902 in the inner-east suburb of Hawt ...

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

. The team slumped and after a number of embarrassing performances in

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

, Balme was sacked after Round 9 and eight successive losses by the controversial new Demons president, Joe Gutnick. He was replaced by Greg Hutchison for the rest of the season.

Statistics

Playing statistics

: , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, , 21 , , 3 , , 8 , , 3 , , 19 , , 11 , , 30 , , 7 , , , , 11 , , 2.7 , , 1.0 , , 6.3 , , 3.7 , , 10.0 , , 2.3 , , , , 3.7 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, , 21 , , 17 , , 28 , , 19 , , 150 , , 34 , , 184 , , 71 , , , , 34 , , 1.6 , , 1.1 , , 8.8 , , 2.0 , , 10.8 , , 4.2 , , , , 2.0 , , 0 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, , 21 , , 20 , , 55 , , 30 , , 150 , , 35 , , 185 , , 73 , , , , 59 , , 2.8 , , 1.5 , , 7.5 , , 1.8 , , 9.3 , , 3.7 , , , , 3.7 , , 2 , - , style="text-align:center;background:#afe6ba;",

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...

† , , 21 , , 13 , , 34 , , 28 , , 88 , , 35 , , 123 , , 47 , , , , 25 , , 2.6 , , 2.2 , , 6.8 , , 2.7 , , 9.5 , , 3.6 , , , , 1.9 , , 1 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" , style="text-align:center;background:#afe6ba;",

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

† , , 21 , , 18 , , 37 , , 21 , , 170 , , 90 , , 260 , , 80 , , , , 7 , , 2.1 , , 1.2 , , 9.4 , , 5.0 , , 14.4 , , 4.4 , , , , 7.0 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

, , 21 , , 25 , , 24 , , 21 , , 225 , , 113 , , 338 , , 114 , , , , 133 , , 1.0 , , 0.8 , , 9.4 , , 4.7 , , 14.1 , , 4.8 , , , , 11.1 , , 0 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

, , 21 , , 21 , , 18 , , 13 , , 193 , , 95 , , 288 , , 97 , , , , 156 , , 0.9 , , 0.6 , , 9.2 , , 4.5 , , 13.7 , , 4.6 , , , , 7.4 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, , 21 , , 22 , , 12 , , 9 , , 233 , , 204 , , 437 , , 118 , , , , 352 , , 0.5 , , 0.4 , , 10.6 , , 9.3 , , 19.9 , , 5.4 , , , , 16.0 , , 10 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, , 21 , , 18 , , 13 , , 6 , , 119 , , 115 , , 234 , , 51 , , , , 175 , , 0.7 , , 0.3 , , 6.6 , , 6.4 , , 13.0 , , 2.8 , , , , 10.3 , , 3 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

, , 21 , , 2 , , 0 , , 1 , , 4 , , 4 , , 8 , , 2 , , , , 1 , , 0.0 , , 0.5 , , 2.0 , , 2.0 , , 4.0 , , 1.0 , , , , 0.5 , , 0 , - class="sortbottom" ! colspan=3, Career ! 159 ! 229 ! 151 ! 1351 ! 736 ! 2087 ! 660 ! ! 953 ! 1.4 ! 0.9 ! 8.6 ! 4.7 ! 13.2 ! 4.2 ! ! 7.5 ! 16

Coaching statistics

: , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center; font-weight:normal" ,

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 20 , , 10 , , 10 , , 0 , , 50.0% , , 10 , , 15 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center; font-weight:normal" ,

, style="text-align:center;", , 25 , , 14 , , 11 , , 0 , , 56.0% , , 7 , , 15 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center; font-weight:normal" ,

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 22 , , 9 , , 13 , , 0 , , 40.9% , , 9 , , 16 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center; font-weight:normal" ,

, style="text-align:center;", , 22 , , 7 , , 15 , , 0 , , 31.8% , , 14 , , 16 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center; font-weight:normal" ,

* , style="text-align:center;", , 9 , , 1 , , 8 , , 0 , , 11.1% , , 16 , , 16 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" , - class="sortbottom" ! colspan=2, Career totals ! 98 ! 41 ! 57 ! 0 ! 41.8% ! colspan=2, ''* Replaced by caretaker coach Greg Hutchison.''

Football administrator

Balme found a position more suited to his personality when he was appointed football operations manager at the struggling Collingwood in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

. In

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

, he was joined by former Richmond teammate

Mick Malthouse Michael Raymond Malthouse (born 17 August 1953) is a former Australian rules footballer, who played for the St Kilda Football Club and Richmond Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL). After finishing his playing career, Maltho ...

(as coach) as part of an ambitious plan to lift the ailing Magpies up the ladder. Balme's calm, rational demeanour and casual style proved to be a great foil to Malthouse's more intense and temperamental character and the team made it to the

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

and 2003 AFL Grand Finals, only to lose both matches to the

Brisbane Lions The Brisbane Lions is a professional Australian rules football club based in Brisbane, Queensland, that plays in the Australian Football League (AFL). The club was formed in late 1996 via a merger of the Melbourne-based 1883 foundation VFL c ...

. Surprisingly, Balme was moved sideways by Collingwood at the end of the

2006 AFL season The 2006 AFL season was the 110th 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 si ...

and he opted to accept an offer from

Geelong Football Club The Geelong Football Club, nicknamed the Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. The club competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier competition, and are the 2022 ...

to act as football operations manager in

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

, for the Cats, the year in which the club won its first Premiership in 44 years. The success at Geelong continued throughout his tenure, with two more Premierships (2009, 2011) and a Grand Final appearance (2008). After eight years at Geelong, Balme was offered and accepted the newly created director of coaching role with Collingwood at the end of 2014. In September 2016 Balme left Collingwood to accept the position of General Manager of Football at . In his first year Richmond went on to win 2017 Premiership, breaking a 37-year drought.http://www.aflcom.au/news/2016-09-12/tigers-appoint-neil-balme-as-head-of-football This drought breaking performance by the

was backed up by a minor premiership in 2018 then going on to win another two AFL premierships in 2019–2020 seasons.

Notes

References

* 1971 Tiger Year Book – Richmond Football Club * Hogan P: ''The Tigers of Old'', Richmond FC, (Melbourne), 1996.

External links

Neil Allen Balme, at ''WAFL Footy Facts''.
* * * *
Geelong Football Club Article – 23 March 2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Balme, Neil 1952 births Living people Australian rules footballers from Perth, Western Australia Subiaco Football Club players Richmond Football Club players Richmond Football Club Premiership players Melbourne Football Club coaches Norwood Football Club players Norwood Football Club coaches Woodville-West Torrens Football Club coaches All-Australian coaches Two-time VFL/AFL Premiership players

Playing career

Coaching career

Statistics

Playing statistics

Coaching statistics

Football administrator

See also

Notes

References

External links