Hawthorn three-peat hero Luke Breust unsurprisingly entered the coaching ranks immediately after concluding an illustrious playing career in the brown and gold.
The veteran was heavily targeted by rival clubs to fill a coaching role, with the 34-year-old expressing interest in joining the coaching ranks after enjoying his mentor role at the Hawks, where he guided young forwards Jack Ginnivan and Nick Watson.
"I've really started to enjoy the coaching side of things in the back end of the career and getting some satisfaction from [helping guys] like Dylan Moore, Nick Watson, and Ginnivan and the guys coming through," Breust said in August following his retirement announcement.
"When I see them do something on the weekend that we've been working on for 10 weeks, it's pretty cool."
Following interest from North Melbourne, among other clubs, Breust opted to begin his post-playing career challenge at Richmond as the Tigers' forwards development coach.
It was a decision he arrived on thanks to an impressive meeting with senior coach Adem Yze and General Manager of Football Performance, Tim Livingstone.
“I had a few clubs reach out. I've got a number of people in the industry that are at other clubs now, and Adem reached out,” Breust told Richmond Media.
“I went and had a meeting, sat down with [Yze] and Tim, and I just got a really good feel straight away.
“I had an existing relationship with Adem, but then to meet Tim as well, I could pitch to them what I thought I could bring to the table. Then they obviously gave something back and talked about Tigerland.
“I got a really good feeling from the moment I sat down with those guys.”
Breust's past relationship with Yze was a key factor in joining his panel, having been coached by Yze when he was an assistant at Hawthorn between 2011-2020, which included a stint as a forwards coach during the Hawks' three-peat premiership era.
“I feel like, of all the coaches I've had across my journey as a player, I probably learned the most from Adem,” Breust said.
“I was so appreciative of that relationship and everything that he's given to me.
“I met with multiple clubs, assessed all that over the last few weeks, and ultimately landed here because of [the Yze and Livingstone] relationships.""
Breust stated that the opportunity to work with several former AFL players in the development coaching department, including former premiership teammate Taylor Duryea, was an exciting element of the position - and a point of difference compared to other clubs.
Richmond's development coaching department now includes Taylor Duryea, Jack Ziebell and Ivan Maric and is led by former Crows player and Essendon senior coach Ben Rutten.
“I didn't know Taylor was coming at the time. Jack Ziebell is here as a development coach as well. There was a number of things that fell into place for me and helped with the decision," Breust said.
Breust will play a vital role in Richmond's success in the long-term as the league's youngest team looks to improve on a solid 2025 campaign, which saw them win five games, including one against an eventual top eight side.
