Fred Leach was an Australian rules footballer who played with Collingwood

Collingwood Football Club

The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...

 in the VFL

Australian Football League

The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...

.

Leach was a centreman in the losing Grand Final side of 1901

1901 VFL Grand Final

The 1901 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Essendon Football Club and Collingwood Football Club, held at the Lake Oval in Melbourne on 7 September 1901. It was the 4th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers for...

, but played at centre half-back in the 1902 premiership team

1902 VFL Grand Final

The 1902 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Collingwood Football Club and Essendon Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 20 September 1902. It was the 5th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine...

.

He died in 1908 of Typhoid fever

Typhoid fever

Typhoid fever, also known as Typhoid, is a common worldwide bacterial disease, transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with the feces of an infected person, which contain the bacterium Salmonella enterica, serovar Typhi...

, just five years after retiring. However, he had previously retired twice, and Collingwood expected him to "walk back after a few weeks absence".

Leach's brothers Arthur

Arthur Leach

Arthur T. Leach was an Australian rules footballer who played with Essendon and Collingwood during the early years of the VFL....

 and Ted also played for Collingwood.