Neil Balme has confirmed that he will remain at Richmond despite recent reports linking him with a move to Adelaide to bolster the club’s football department.
Adelaide held discussions with the highly-respected football administrator last week as the club continues its rebuild after reaching a grand final in 2017.
Premature reports indicated that Balme, currently Richmond’s Senior Club Advisor, had been installed as Adelaide’s head of football, but the 69-year-old has since confirmed he would remain at Punt Road.
“I appreciate [the] Adelaide Football Club reaching out for a conversation, but Richmond is where my heart is and I look forward to continuing to help strengthen the club into the future,” Balme said in a statement on Monday night.
Balme has overseen premiership success at both Richmond and Geelong during his storied tenure as a football administrator, whilst also assisting at Collingwood in two separate stints.
According to The Age, Adelaide is understood to have been interested in bringing Balme on board in and advisory role to support football manager Adam Kelly and Matthew Nicks, with the pair still lacking significant experience in their respective roles.
After a bottom-placed finish in Nicks’ first season as coach in 2020, Adelaide showed signs of promise this year, finishing the season in 15th place with seven wins.
The club has been embroiled in a scandal to finish the season with former captain Taylor Walker banned after uttering a racial slur at an Indigenous opponent in a SANFL match during the year.