Michael Bowden (footballer)
Michael John Bowden OAM (21 March 1947 – 11 April 2020) was an Australian rules football player and Indigenous advocate. Bowden played 59 matches for the Richmond Football Club in the VFL between 1967 and 1971. Following his playing career he became an educator in the Northern Territory and a passionate advocate for Indigenous communities, for which he received a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM).
| Michael Bowden | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bowden playing for Richmond in the VFL | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Michael John Bowden | ||
| Date of birth | 21 March 1947 | ||
| Date of death | 11 April 2020 (aged 73) | ||
| Original team(s) | St Kevin's College | ||
| Height | 185 cm (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Weight | 94 kg (207 lb) | ||
| Position(s) | Ruck-rover | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1967–1971 | Richmond | 59 (20) | |
| 1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1971. | |||
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Football career edit
Bowden attended St Kevins College where he won the school's 1964 best and fairest and at the same time played for the Richmond under 19s program before quitting to study as a priest at Corpus Christi College.[1][2] He left the seminary after two years and returned to Richmond, where he made his senior league debut in round 8 of the 1967 season, playing as a ruck-rover.[1]
Bowden was a premiership player in 1969, after leading the league with 194 handballs that season.[3]
He was appointed the club's reserves-grade captain the following season and lead that team to a reserves premiership in the 1971 season.
Post-football career, family and illness edit
Bowden became a teacher, and eventually principal, of remote community schools for Indigenous Australian students in the Northern Territory.[4] He was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to the Indigenous community of the Northern Territory in January 2020.[5]
Bowden had three sons who went on to play for Richmond in Sean, Joel and Patrick. Two more sons, Rhett and Kane, played for the Port Melbourne Football Club in the VFA.[1]
Bowden suffered from motor neuron disease in later life and died from the affliction on 11 April 2020.[3]
VFL statistics edit
| Season | Team | No. | Games | Totals | Averages (per game) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | B | K | H | D | M | T | G | B | K | H | D | M | T | ||||
| 1967 | Richmond | 11 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 69 | 30 | 99 | 20 | - | 0.3 | 0.4 | 9.9 | 4.3 | 14.1 | 2.9 | - |
| 1968 | Richmond | 11 | 15 | 3 | 9 | 160 | 146 | 306 | 38 | - | 0.2 | 0.6 | 10.7 | 9.7 | 20.4 | 2.5 | - |
| 1969 | Richmond | 11 | 20 | 6 | 4 | 185 | 194 | 379 | 87 | - | 0.3 | 0.2 | 9.3 | 9.7 | 19.0 | 4.4 | - |
| 1970 | Richmond | 11 | 12 | 4 | 3 | 100 | 118 | 218 | 55 | - | 0.3 | 0.3 | 8.3 | 9.8 | 18.2 | 4.6 | - |
| 1971 | Richmond | 11 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 18 | 25 | 43 | 10 | - | 1.0 | 0.0 | 3.6 | 5.0 | 8.6 | 2.0 | - |
| Career[6] | 59 | 20 | 19 | 532 | 513 | 1045 | 210 | - | 0.3 | 0.3 | 9.0 | 8.7 | 17.7 | 3.6 | - | ||
References edit
- ^ a b c Greenberg, Tony (11 April 2020). "Vale Mike Bowden". Richmond Football Club website. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
- ^ Rhett Bartlett and Trevor Ruddell. "Michael Bowden". Tigerland Archive. Rhett Bartlett and Trevor Ruddell. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
- ^ a b "Tigers flag hero passes away after battle with MND". afl.com.au. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Footy here furthered indigenous causes" (PDF). NT News. 26 January 2020. p. 8.
- ^ "Honour Citation". Australian Honours Search Facility. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
- ^ "AFL Tables – Michael Bowden – Stats – Statistics". AFL Tables. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
- Hogan P: The Tigers Of Old, Richmond FC, Melbourne 1996
External links edit
- Michael Bowden's playing statistics from AFL Tables
- Michael Bowden at AustralianFootball.com
- Michael Bowden's profile at Tigerland Archive