2010 Intermediate Boys Football

Our last Boys team to make it is as deep as State Top 8.

They played off at Casey Fields in the rain and mud, against two very slick Melbourne teams with Football academies, including Hallam Secondary College and Box Hill Senior Secondary College.

Coach Gary Michael arranged for the boys to stay the night before at the clubrooms of a local football club. The boys spread out across the floor in swags and sleeping bags, chowed down a Breakfast of Champions at Macdonald’s, and headed out to Casey .

The team had some considerable talent including 7 that played Under 15 V-Line Cup, 4 of whom played Under 18 Murray Bushrangers, and 2 of whom played Senior VFL.

Year 10 Josh Porter would become the most decorated footballer in the line-up. Porter the year prior was part of the 2009 Under 15 North East Border V-Line Cup team (alongside Sam Maddern), twice named in the Best from 3 games. During the 2010 year as a Year 10, he filled in for 1 Wangaratta Magpies Thirds game and kicked 5 goals. The following year at Year 11, he would kick 28 goals from 8 Thirds games. He spent his Year 12 year with the Murray Bushrangers, kicking 20 goals from 15 games, as well as playing 4 Senior games for the Magpies.

Porter was on the brink of being drafted, meeting with several clubs including Fremantle and North Melbourne, however wasn’t selected. The key forward went on to play almost 100 VFL games (90 games, 91 goals) for Werribee, and came home to play in the 2017 O&M Senior Premiership for Wangaratta. His father Chris was a 3-time Premiership player (1977, 1978, 1979) for Wangaratta Rovers, uncle Noel a 2-time Premiership player (1978, 1979) with the Rovers. His cousins won 7 Senior Premierships between them at the Magpies – Judd (2007, 2008, 2017) and Daine (2007, 2008, 2017, 2022).

The next most decorated would be Year 9 Jade Cleeland. He was in the 2010 V-Line Cup (alongside Damien Bradley, Jack Davies, Hayden Espejo and Louis Vescio). He played 18 TAC Cup games in 2013 for the Murray Bushrangers at Year 12, before playing 12 Senior VFL games for Werribee, and 36 Senior SANFL games for West Adelaide.

The 197cm Cleeland and 195cm Porter rank likely the 2nd best Big Man duos we’ve ever fielded in the same side, in terms of Football CVs. Mark Porter and Leigh Newton (both AFL ruckman) take the cake, but it’s hard to find a better pairing at the rung below them.

The 3rd to play Murray Bushrangers was Year 9 Louis Vescio. A silly skilled small, Vescio won the Junior League’s 2008 Ken Farrell Medal (League Best & Fairest, Under 15s), before playing in the 2010 U15 V-Line Cup team, and then 5 Under 18 TAC Cup games for the Bushrangers in 2012 as a bottom-aged Year 11, and another 7 in 2013. He would play 17 Senior games for the Magpies in 2014, before a decade of Senior football for Avondale Heights (Essendon & District FL), Montrose (Easter FL) and University Blacks (VAFA). He would represent the VAFA in an Interstate clash against the Perth FL in 2019. Vescio’s older sister of course is Darcy Vescio, Carlton AFLW superstar, and still our school’s only AFLW player ever.