As soon as Adem Yze was hired as Tigers general manager, the Hall of Famer became a primary objective.
Despite initially competing for the top post, Richmond favourite son Chris Newman has been enticed back to the club to join new senior coach Adem Yze’s team.
Newman, an AFL Hall of Famer, retired at the end of the 2015 season and immediately joined Hawthorn as a development coach.
He has since worked for the Hawks, but will now return to the Tigers as an assistant to his former colleague Yze.
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Yze spent nearly a decade at Hawthorn before moving on to Melbourne for three years as he sought higher-level positions.
Richmond football manager Tim Livingstone stated that after being appointed for 2024, Yze made recruiting Newman one of his primary priority.
“Chris has forged an excellent reputation as a terrific coach across the past eight years working at Hawthorn in various roles,” Livingstone said in a statement.
“He is highly motivated, with an excellent ability to communicate and form relationships with players and staff, as well as a demonstrated track record of developing individuals and assisting in the delivery of growth and positive outcomes for a team.”
“With Adem taking over as senior coach last week, he was very keen on getting Chris on board after working closely with him at the Hawks. They have a great bond, and we believe Chris would be a great fit for our team and coaching staff.”
Newman, who led the club from 2009 to 2012 before handing over to Trent Cotchin, returns to a Punt Road that has altered dramatically.
Only four players from his final game in yellow and black remain on the list: Dylan Grimes, Dustin Martin, Kamdyn McIntosh, and Nick Vlastuin.
“I cannot wait to get started back at Richmond, working closely with the players and football staff,” he told reporters.
“It will be nice to be back in familiar colours and working with Adem and the coaches to help the team return to finals action.”
Newman’s function in 2024 is unknown, however during his time at Hawthorn, he was responsible for development, stoppage strategy, opposition analysis, backs and forwards.
He also led Box Hill to the VFL premiership in 2018.
“There’s no denying Chris has had a positive impact here at Hawthorn,” Hawks coach Rob McCartney said.
“From the start of his coaching career, Chris demonstrated an exceptional ability to establish strong connections and relationships with his players and staff.”
“After being interviewed for the senior coach position at Richmond, Chris felt that gaining more experience in another coaching environment would help his development and advance his senior coaching aspirations.” Chris was open and honest with the club about his desire to return to his former team.
Senior coach Sam Mitchell of Hawthorn quipped that Newman never quit rooting for the Tigers.
“He still refers to all the (Richmond) boys by their nicknames and all that.” “He gets a lot of snide remarks from our coaches in here,” Mitchell remarked in August.
Newman’s transfer to Richmond comes amid doubt surrounding the future of former interim coach Andrew McQualter, who was passed up for Yze.
“He presented well during the process and demonstrated he is a senior coach of the future,” said Tigers president John O’Rourke.
When Damien Hardwick departed the club, Andrew made the selfless decision to take on the interim post, and he has carried himself with confidence and class. He continued to impress during the interview process, and I have no doubt he will be an AFL coach in the future.”
Xavier Clarke, a Richmond assistant, has also left to join North Melbourne.
He had been with the Tigers since 2016 as a development and forwards coach, among other things.
“We are delighted to have Xavier join our club,” Kangaroos coach Todd Viney stated.
“A highly talented player and now a highly talented coach, Xavier understands what it takes to achieve ultimate success, having coached his own team, the NT Thunder, to a premiership and played a role in three Richmond premierships.”
“During his eight years at Punt Road, he gained coaching experience and took on a variety of roles.” He also understands the difficulties that football can present, having had a lot of injuries over his career.
“The way in which he has forged a successful coaching career is a credit to him, and we see him as a perfect fit for our club.”
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