Boundary rider is a long-established (1864) Australasian term for a cattle or sheep station employee whose duties entail a regular tour (by horse, camel or motor vehicle) of the outer perimeter (boundary) of the property, checking condition of fences, collecting stock that may have escaped and ejecting strays that may have wandered onto the property, effecting any repairs that may be required, and reporting anything out of the ordinary to the owner or manager. On larger properties, semi-permanent shelters (boundary rider's huts) may be provided for overnight accommodation, with riders generally carrying their own swags.

Sporting

In modern parlance, boundary rider is a term used in the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional sports, professional competition of Australian rules football. It was originally named the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was founded in 1896 as a breakaway competition ...

as well as other field sports to denote a commentator who works from the sidelines of the field or 'boundary'. The role of the boundary rider is to have access to the players and coaching/medical staff on the interchange bench, enabling them to provide more detailed commentary on current game conditions as well as any injury concerns for the competing teams. They often also have the responsibility of interviewing players and coaching/medical staff during breaks in the games (quarter-/half-/three-quarter time) as well interviewing a players or coaches of the match upon completion.

Notable boundary riders

* Christi Malthouse,

Network Ten Network 10 (commonly known as the 10 Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global's Paramount Networks UK & Australia, UK & Australia division and is o ...

(2002–) * Peter Larkins,

Triple M Triple M is an Australian commercial radio network owned and operated by Southern Cross Austereo. The network consists of 45 radio stations with flagship stations broadcasting a mainstream/classic rock music format in Sydney, Melbourne, and B ...

(1997–),

Nine Network Nine Network (stylised 9Network, and commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of the five main free-to-air television ...

(2001–) * Robert Dipierdomenico *

Neil Kerley Donald Neil Kerley (20 February 1934 – 29 June 2022) was an Australian rules footballer and coach. He is best known for taking three clubs to four South Australian National Football League (SANFL) premierships over three decades as both a p ...

Seven Network Seven Network (stylised 7Network, and commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is an Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, ...

(1990s)

Cricket

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

, a boundary rider can be an

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

or other person at the boundary of the field.

References

Australian rules football terminology Slang Australian English {{AFL-stub