The Richmond Football Club are mourning the death of Noel Bosch, coach of the Under 19s in 1983, and a trailblazing figure in the development of junior players.
Mr Bosch passed away on Friday after a lengthy battle with cancer, his daughter advised the Richmond Former Players and Officials.
Over a 40+ year career, he established an innovative skills squad at Rusden Campus, was ‘Special Skills Coach’ for the Tigers in their 1980 premiership, and in a delightful double honour – was the runner for Wayne Walsh’s Under 19’s flag victory over Fitzroy earlier that same day.
As Development Officer for Richmond, he worked hand in hand with premiership player and Hall of Famer Barry Rowlings to oversee some 313 school clinics during the 1982 season, run primary and junior coaching courses, and host “Esso Superclinics” at Punt Road which attracted over 2,500 children during the year.
1982 RFC Annual Report
The following year he replaced Walsh (who went to Footscray as Chairman of Selectors) as the Under 19s coach and took the side to the Elimination Final where they fought back from 8 goals down to lose by 15 points.
In a 2019 interview with Richmond Historian Rhett Bartlett, Bosch recalled a conversation he had earlier in that season with Tiger powerbroker Graeme Richmond, after the side lost their Round 4 clash to Denis Pagan’s North Melbourne.
“Jesus Cocko, we’ve got to toughen up these kids, we’ve just been belted.”
Bosch took the advice on board, and they won the next three games by an average of 70 points.
“I think Graeme made a lot of enemies, but Graeme was always on my side, he talked me into doing the development job. He had a great influence on me of really making the decision to go into football fulltime along with Kevin Sheedy.”
1983 RFC Annual Report
Growing up, Bosch played for Try Boys in South Yarra, and as a teenager regularly played kick-to-kick with a young Kevin Sheedy, his brother Pat, and Kevin Bartlett in the park.
As a South Melbourne supporter, he was residentially tied to Melbourne where he would play in the Fourths, Thirds, and Seconds, before joining Prahran in the VFA where he made their state side in 1962.
May 21, 1962 article on VFA State Squad
When long-time friend Kevin Sheedy began his foray into player development during the 1970s, he brought Bosch across as kicking coach and to help at clinics.
“When Sheedy got the rocket handball started, we went out in the back paddock and he said what do you reckon about this mate? And that’s when we started teaching it to our squads.”
After Tigerland he joined Noel Judkins at Essendon as full-time Development Manager.
“I used to love getting up and going to work, and as a team Noel Judkins and I were terrific. We got on so well, we just used to go everywhere, we were called the Two Noels.”
In 1992 he was appointed the Melbourne-based manager of the Sydney Swans - “my claim to fame was I pushed up Andrew Dunkley and Darryn Creswell” - and later worked part-time recruiting for Fremantle and West Coast.
But by that stage, in his own words, he was “getting a bit sick of all the stats coming into it.”
“When you go out and see someone, and they grab you straight away, you can read all the stats you like about others, but you’ll always go back to that one. People can shoot me down in flame with their stats, but stats don’t show you a guy’s mood on the field”.
Of his Rusden set-up, Bosch would teach his skills and life lessons to anyone who was interested – the potential Tiger talent spotted by recruiters around the country, or even senior or junior players from local clubs who would reply to his open invitations.
“Players were taught to kick left and right foot, and use left and right hands. We never discussed tactics. I’m a great believer that’s up to the coach that coaches you on a Saturday, that’s his job.”
The legacy he left on junior players throughout the 1970s and 1980s is immeasurable, and we will always be so proud of his association at Tigerland.
Noel Bosch, front and centre as coach of the 1991 U19 Vic Champions
