Trent Cotchin

Trent William Cotchin (born 7 April 1990) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).

He is an All-Australian, a three-time Richmond best and fairest winner, a Brownlow medallist, and a three-time premiership winning captain.

He was assigned the number nine guernsey, which had remained unused since the retirement of former club captain Wayne Campbell at the end of the 2005 season.

Upon joining the club, Cotchin began to rehabilitate his injured foot but suffered the effects of an inflamed Achilles tendon on just his second treadmill run.

He missed much of the club's standard pre-season training, forced instead to stick to swimming and exercise bike sessions to maintain fitness.

Cotchin returned to full training the week of round 1 but was not declared fit to play for a further four weeks.

He subsequently played four matches with Richmond's Victorian Football League (VFL) affiliate side, Coburg.

In 2006, Cotchin captained the Victorian Metro side in the under-16 national championships.

Cotchin represented the Victorian Metro side at the 2007 AFL Under 18 Championships and captained the Vic Metro side at 2006 Under 16 Championships.

He played for the Northern Knights in the TAC Cup as a junior, before being drafted to Richmond with the second overall pick in the 2007 national draft.

In January 2007, Cotchin spent time training with the Richmond Football Club senior list as a member of the AIS/AFL Academy.

Cotchin later spoke of being taken under the wing of Richmond player, Brett Deledio.

At the time Deledio was his favourite AFL player, with a poster of him hanging on Cotchin's bedroom wall in his family home.

At the 2007 AFL Under 18 Championships, Cotchin was a member of the runner-up Victorian Metro side.

Cotchin suffered a broken foot while playing with the Northern Knights in the TAC Cup finals in September 2007, which saw him face more than six weeks away from football.

Cotchin attended high school at Parade College and Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School.

He was named among the team's best in the latter's 2007 state school championship victory.

Prior to the 2007 AFL draft, Cotchin was notable for his "class, balance, (and) ability to read the play".

He was projected to be a high draft pick, with recruiter Derek Hine telling the Herald Sun that Cotchin would be his choice for the number one pick had it been in Collingwood's hands.

In October that year, Cotchin's father Peter had spoken to the media expressing concern over the possibility that his son may be drafted by.

He cited the club's then-issues with recreational drug use among its playing list.

Cotchin missed most of the AFL's pre-draft camp testing on account of the ankle injury sustained earlier in the year.

In the days prior to the draft, Cotchin was heavily linked to Richmond with the second overall selection.

The CEO of, who held the number one pick, confirmed that the club would choose between Cotchin and Northern Knights teammate Matthew Kreuzer with their pick.

Cotchin was drafted by with the club's first selection and the second overall in the 2007 AFL draft.

Cotchin made his senior debut in round 8 of the 2008 season in a match against at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

He recorded sixteen disposals and an equal team-high two goals, one of which came with his first kick.

In round 11, Cotchin recorded 17 possessions in the first half of Richmond's match against.

He finished the match with 25 disposals and a goal to his name.

After further impressive performances, Cotchin received the AFL Rising Star nomination for round 12.

He kicked a goal and gathered 14 possessions on his way to the nomination.

Cotchin did not miss a game after making his debut, finishing the season having played fifteen games, kicking nine goals and averaging 16.4 disposals per game.

He ultimately finished third in the AFL Rising Star Award with 21 votes, behind 's Cyril Rioli (37 votes) and 's Rhys Palmer who topped the poll with 44 votes.

Cotchin again struggled with Achilles issues in the pre-season and early stages of his second season.

He missed the first seven matches of the season, instead playing limited game-time in VFL games with Coburg.

He eventually returned to the club's senior side in Richmond's round 8 match with.

Cotchin's season came to an end after sustaining a hip injury in the round 18 match against.

He led the club to a 37-year drought-breaking premiership in 2017 before taking them again to a premiership in 2019 and 2020.

Cotchin grew up in the northern Melbourne suburb of Reservoir and spent his later teenage years in the Victorian town of Wollert, 27 kilometres north of Melbourne.

He played his junior football with West Preston Lakeside in the Northern Football League before moving on to play with the Northern Knights in the TAC Cup at the age of 16.