A serious injury to Matthew Dervan when he was only 14 proved to be a blessing in disguise for his football pathway.
After tearing a patella tendon at Williamstown Juniors, Dervan turned his back on playing and focused his attention on goal-umpiring.
Six years down the track, Dervan, now 20, is recognised as one of the best goal umpires in Victoria and has been added to the AFL goal -umpiring panel for 2016.
“I thought that if I’m getting injuries so young, maybe I should try something different,” he told
Star Weekly.
“Getting into umpiring at the age of 14 has been the best decision of my life. It gave me time to develop and learn.”
The Newport resident found a new home as a goal umpire in the VAFA ranks and made an immediate impression, earning an under-19 grand final in his first year.
He stood between the posts in two premier grand finals before he was snapped up by the VFL, and that’s where goal-umpiring began to get serious for Dervan.
The sports and recreation management student at Victoria University suddenly had a full plate juggling academic commitments with VFL duties, but made fine work of both, earning a job placement at TAC Cup club Western Jets during his university course and rising up the ranks of the VFL competition with his goal-umpiring.
Dervan waved the flags at the past two VFL grand finals, won by local clubs Footscray and Williamstown.
“Things sort of clicked from day one and I’ve done two VFL grand finals,” Dervan said. “As weird as it might sound, grand finals have been the easiest games to umpire because you’ve worked so hard throughout the home -and-away rounds and the finals series.
“The grand final is a moment when you can enjoy it and relax because there’s no tomorrow.”
Dervan will be plying his trade at AFL arenas from next season despite his young age.
He wants to be a role model for young umpires in the area and prove age is no barrier. “Most AFL umpires are over 25,” he said.
Dervan’s football journey will continue when he gets the chance to officiate in AFL pre-season games in February.
So is he ready for the pressure of making the big decisions in blockbuster games with fans breathing down his neck?
“We talk about footy being the greatest game on earth, so to have the best seat in the house for it will be an adrenaline rush,” he said. “You know the crowd will be up and about supporting their team, so you have to embrace it and deal with whatever comes because you’ll cop lip from the stands. That’s part of footy culture.
“The biggest thing about umpiring is that umpires support each other.
“Another great part about umpiring is the camaraderie and mateship.
“We want the best for the game and we try to do everything we can to serve the game.”
