Robert Henry Nash (22 April 1884 – 16 June 1958) was a leading Australian rules footballer who was captain of the Collingwood Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL), and captain-coach of the Footscray Football Club in the Victorian Football Association (VFA).

Family The son of Michael Joseph "Mick" Nash (1862–1939), who played for Carlton when it was part of the VFA,Michael Nash, Blueseum. and Mary Ann (a.k.a. "Marianne") Nash (1861–1940), née Tobin, Robert Henry Nash was born on 22 April 1884. He married Mary Anne Ryan in 1906.

His uncle, Thomas M. Nash (1859–?), also played for Carlton when it was part of the VFA.Thomas M. Nash, Blueseum. Bob Nash is best known as the father of Test cricketer and leading footballer Laurie Nash.Wallish (1998).

Football Northcote (MJFA) Nash played for Northcote in the Metropolitan Junior Football Association (MJFA) until he was recruited by Collingwood in 1904.

Collingwood (VFL) Nash became a leading player at Collingwood, playing 88 games and kicking 14 goals in six seasons Regarded as a powerful player who was a good mark and kick,australianfootball.com. he captained Collingwood in 1908 and 1909 and represented Victoria at the first interstate carnival in Melbourne in 1908.

In August 1907, due to an incident during the 17 August 1907 match that Collingwood lost 3.8 (26) to St. Kilda 8.19 (67), "Nash, of Collingwood, was disqualified for [three matches for] assaulting [Jack] Wells, of St. Kilda, though the latter was the aggressor in connection with that particular incident, previously to which Nash had been guilty of a grossly savage attack on [Jimmy] Matthews — a diminutive St. Kilda player"The only bad incident of a hard-fought game occurred in [the third] quarter. Matthews, trying to stop Nash, brought the heavier man down on top of him, and Nash seemed to very deliberately dig his heel into his smaller opponent as they lay on the ground. Anyhow there was a roar of disapproval from the crowd as a couple of men ran to pick up Matthews, who was temporarily out of action. Nash went up towards the centre and encountered Nemesis in the person of the powerful Wells. There was a clinch, and the Collingwood back was whirled off his feet and thrown heavily. No one resented Wells's action; in fact, they cheered him, and the account was completely squared. There was lots in the game that could not be called child's play, but this was the only occasion on which temper was shown.": Observer, "St. Kilda Revival: Collingwood Badly Beaten", The Argus, (Monday, 19 August 1907), p.4. — for which he was not called to account at all."Follower, "The Football Season", The Age, (Monday, 26 August 1907), p.11.

In June 1909, following the drawn 19 June match between Collingwood and Melbourne, Nash was reported for disputing the umpire's decision; and, although found guilty at the hearing, Nash was not suspended, but was "admonished" by the VFL's tribunal.Football Umpire's Complaint: Players Admonished, The Age, (Thursday, 1 July 1909), p.5.

Footscray (VFA) He left Collingwood at the end of the 1909 VFL season, serving two years as captain-coach of VFA side Footscray (1910–1911), and one additional year as a player (1912), before retiring at the end of 1912.The VFA Project.

Tasmania Initially employed as a gas stoker,Gas Arbitration: Worker Allowed Monday Off to Recover from Football!, The Geelong Advertiser, (Thursday, 10 April 1913) p.4. Nash became a policeman and, as such, participated in the 1923 Victorian police strike.Adams, Michael, "When an Australian city went mad: The unprecedented chaos that engulfed Melbourne for three days", news.com.au, 16 December 2018.

Discharged from the force along with 633 others as a result of his participation in that strike,Police Who Stood Fast: 634 Discharges from Force, The Argus (Saturday, 15 December 1923), p.36.Flanigan, M. (1998) "Laurie Nash - The Genius", The Age, 5 May 1998 he moved his family to Tasmania, and took over the hotel at Parattah.Shaw, I. (2006) The Bloodbath, Scribe, Melbourne. . There he oversaw the sporting development of Laurie and his other son, Robert Jnr (also an accomplished footballer, who played for four seasons with the Coburg Football Club in the VFA, from 1934 to 1937);Nash, Robert, The VFA Project; note that (as at 9 December 2018) the site has mistakenly conflated the playing records of father (at Footscray) and son (at Coburg). and, initially, he encouraged Laurie to concentrate on cricket rather than football,Main, J. & Holmesby, R. (2005) Encyclopedia of AFL Football Players AFL Publishing (2005) refusing to allow Laurie to play senior football before he turned 19.

Death Nash collapsed and died at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, on Monday 16 June 1958, just before three-quarter-time, while watching a Melbourne-Collingwood match on the Queen's Birthday.Wallish, p. 339.Deaths: Nash, The Age, (Tuesday, 17 June 1958), p.11.

See also 1908 Melbourne Carnival

Footnotes

References

Wallish, E. (1998) The Great Laurie Nash, Ryan Publishing, Melbourne.

External links

Bob Nash, australianfootball.com. Bob Nash, Boyles Football Photos. Nash, Robert, The VFA Project.