Nathan Broad was ready to leave Richmond, but one phone call convinced him to stayBy Riley Beveridge
afl.com.au
13 March 2025NATHAN Broad walked into the office of Richmond list manager Blair Hartley last August ready to inform the club he was heading to North Melbourne. He walked out of it determined to commit his future to Richmond.
The decision had always been in Broad's hands, but it was one he had toyed endlessly with in the weeks before. Head to the Kangas and follow a host of premiership teammates in starting fresh, or stay at Punt Road and sign a contract extension with the club that had taken a chance on him when few others were willing to.
"I went in and I just said to Blair, 'Where are we at?'" Broad told AFL.com.au this week.
"I told him where it sat with me and said I was getting closer and closer to leaving. We kind of had a father-son chat. We've known each other for a long time now. We took all of the business out of it and just sat down and had a conversation as two mates.
"He said he wouldn't make me do anything, that it was up to me. But I left there just thinking, 'Wow … Blair has done so much for me and this club has done so much'. That's when the phone call with my old man happened."
North Melbourne had pursued Broad aggressively, making a bold pitch for him to lead a developing backline into the next phase of its future under the tutelage of coaching great Alastair Clarkson. But, in the back of Broad's mind was an enduring feeling of his loyalty to those in the yellow and black.
Richmond had been the club to take a punt on an unpolished 22-year-old, had given him the opportunity to play in three premierships, had elevated him into its leadership group, had been the home for his 148-game career. He wanted to repay the faith. That's when the phone call with his father, Neal, made up his mind once and for all.
"Obviously, the North offer came in and it was a pretty good offer," Broad said.
"A guy at my age, having been a mature-aged pick who missed four years of AFL footy, when you see something like that you definitely have a look. The interest kept growing and growing. I had a few meetings here and there, but when it came to crunch time I just sat down and had that chat with my dad.
"I just told dad where it was at and I said the more it went on, the feeling didn't sit right in my guts. He just said, 'Well, what are your values in life?' He asked if it wasn't for Richmond, would I even have this decision to make? It was an easy decision in the end.
"Richmond showed faith in me when no one else did, to be honest. It was only Richmond that was interested in me at 22. My theory is, if they didn't pick me up, I'd still be plumbing on the shovels. No disrespect, but this is a much better life than being a plumber.
"Yeah, the money might have been better. But, at the end of the day, Richmond showed faith in me. It's only fair that now we're 18th on the ladder, I show the faith back in the club and do everything I can to put them in front. In the end, I'm stoked I made the decision to stay. I f***ing love this club."
Broad's decision bucked the trend at Punt Road. His premiership coach, Damien Hardwick, had left the club for Gold Coast. His premiership teammates, Shai Bolton, Liam Baker, Daniel Rioli and Jack Graham, had all followed to pastures new. Others, like Dustin Martin, Dylan Grimes and Marlion Pickett, had retired.
But, where many had zigged in the face of a potentially long Richmond rebuild, Broad zagged. Rather than allow their decisions to influence his own choice, Broad decided to follow his heart and stay true to his values.
"Their decisions could've made it easier for me, I'm not sure," Broad said.
"I'm so grateful for what I have in my life and where I'm at in my life. That's all because of Richmond. I'm content, I'm happy. I can put all of my energy into these kids and this footy club. What the other boys did, it doesn't and didn't really faze me too much. At the end of the day, it was about my values and what I stand for.
"I just thought if I left, when if I looked back in 10 or 20 years, would I be happy with this decision? I think karma is a good thing. I think it'll get me down the track someday, I reckon good karma will get me for sticking on."
Broad had wanted to repay Richmond's faith. In turn, the club gave its dependable defender an immediate sign of its own trust in him. Wanting mentors for the eight young draftees that walked through their doors last November, the Tigers entrusted Broad to provide a home for their No.1 pick Sam Lalor.
But it's been an easy job. Despite the limelight that accompanies hearing your name called with the first overall selection, the comparisons to Dustin Martin, and the excitement of a round one debut that was confirmed earlier this week, Lalor's feet have remained firmly on the floor. Not that Broad has had to keep them there.
"I haven't had to say too much to him, to be honest," Broad said.
"I was a little bit worried when everyone kept saying, 'Dusty this' and 'Dusty that'. But the way he's been brought up, as a country lad, he's pretty lowkey already. He's honestly shocked me, they all have. If he went pick one or pick 50, I don't think he'd care. He's just rapt to be playing footy at the AFL level.
"He's been raised really well. The way he's been raised and, with where his head's at, I think he'll handle it really well. I just try to tell him that no one expects him to do anything amazing. Just go out there, play team footy and play to your strengths. He's shown that at training and, in that West Coast game, he tore it apart. He's just going to get better and better."
But what about Lalor's domestic duties? Has he cooked, cleaned, and done his chores? Maybe not, although he has provided a watchful eye over Broad's 18-month-old daughter Samara since arriving at their house around Christmas.
"He was always asking about cleaning up," Broad laughed. "But he always had one eye shut because he was so knackered from training. I know he was trying to be nice by asking, but I was just telling him to go sit on the couch or lay in bed.
"But he was great with my little daughter. He looked after her every now and again. We're very similar, both country boys, both have very similar interests. He was meant to be there for four weeks, but he stayed for seven. That's how good a kid he is."
Broad's own journey into the AFL was vastly different to that of Lalor's. Overlooked at 18, 19, 20 and 21, he finally got his opportunity at Richmond after plugging away for four years in the WAFL. But he's become a three-time premiership player, and this season holds his most prominent position yet in the club's leadership group.
Now the fourth-longest tenured player at the Tigers – behind only Nick Vlastuin, Kamdyn McIntosh and Jayden Short – he feels he owes the club for what's ahead in the next chapter of his career, regardless of the short-term pain it might face. After all, it's why he stayed last year.
"I've had success and I'm super grateful for that," Broad said.
"Now, it's different for me. I want to give this group success. It's a question of how I can do that, and it's just about being the best leader I can. I'm using every chance I get to make these kids better, teach them something, show them what the standards are and what a Richmond man is, show them what that's all about.
"Fingers crossed, we get back to the top when I'm still here. But, if not, hopefully I can play a small part in getting these boys back to the top. If we win another flag and I'm still here, awesome. But if it's down the track, in five years or something, hopefully I've played a small part in that."
https://www.afl.com.au/news/1277297/nathan-broad-was-ready-to-leave-richmond-tigers-but-one-phone-call-convinced-him-to-stay
