Former Footscray player Josh Patullo leaves country life, dairy farm behind to sign with Sturt
A former VFL key-position player is the latest Sturt signing for the 2019 SANFL season.
GROWING up on a dairy farm southeast of Melbourne, footballer Josh Patullo was never really keen on leaving Victoria.
That was why he knocked back a chance to move to Adelaide when Sturt first tried to get the former Footscray big man to Unley Oval.
Now, fast-forward 12 months, the 200cm key position player is ready to move away from his hometown and this week signed with the Double Blues.
“I spoke to (ex-Sturt coach) Marty Mattner last year and he said to have a think about coming over,” Patullo says.
“This time last year, I was pretty keen on staying in Victoria for another year and wanted to have another go at Footscray.
“Then (Sturt football manager) Chris Trapp called me about a month ago and asked if I was keen.
“They (Sturt) didn’t have a key-position forward so there’s an opportunity there for me.
“It feels like it’s now the right time and I feel really good about it (moving) this year.
“I can’t wait to get stuck into it.”
The 21-year-old hails from Lang Lang, Victoria, which has a population of about 1585.
When he wasn’t kicking the football around, Patullo spent his childhood and teenage years helping his parents on the farm.
Patullo featured up with Gippsland Power in the TAC Cup in 2016 and was named in the Team of the Year.
He managed only four games in the VFL this year, but believed a full, strong pre-season with Sturt would improve his consistency.
“My strengths are probably running and marking,” he says.
“But I’m hoping to get a bit bigger in size and bulking up a bit with a bit more upper-body strength.”
Patullo is also refusing to give up on his AFL dream and hopes a change of club in 2019 will put him in front of recruiters’ eyes.
“You see so many stories of blokes that just keep on keeping on and keep knocking the door down, so eventually they make it.
“Getting drafted has always been a big thing and I’ve got a really good chance to give it my all and hopefully get rookie-listed to an AFL club.”
