Dane Rampe’s rise from unknown to star continues with first All-Australian cap

The rise and rise of Dane Rampe has continued with the unlikely Swan now an even unlikelier All-Australian after a stellar season.

Dane Rampe is a first-time All-Australian.

THE rise and rise of Dane Rampe has continued with the unlikely Swan now an even unlikelier All-Australian.

Four years ago the Clovelly native was running around in the Sydney footy league for UNSW-East Sydney Bulldogs, playing for fun with his mates.

Rampe feared his shot at the AFL had passed. He’d moved to Melbourne to play in the VFL with Williamstown two years earlier, but had come up empty after the Western Bulldogs overlooked him twice for a rookie spot despite doing two full pre-seasons with the club.

But the frustration of being unwanted is now ancient history for the 26-year-old, who is over the moon with his All-Australian selection.

“It’s very exciting,” Rampe told the Daily Telegraph.

“It’s a great reward for effort and persistence.”

Dane Rampe after being drafted by Sydney.

Dane Rampe is a star defender for Sydney.

Persistence is an understatement. Even when he was playing in the local Sydney competition in 2012 Rampe never gave up hope of playing in the AFL.

“Back then All-Australian honours were the furthest thing from my mind to be honest,” Rampe said

“I was happy to get on the list. Then I was happy to play a game. So now to consistently get a game in a very good team is a dream come true and this is the icing on the cake.”

Of course there is an element of luck. In Rampe’s case it came with a big dose of the bad luck for 2012 premiership player Alex Johnson, who ruptured his ACL in early 2013.

On the back of a brilliant pre-season Rampe took Johnson’s position for the round one match against Greater Western Sydney. He was dropped the following week but returned for the round four match against Geelong and hasn’t missed a match since — playing 93 games straight, including eight finals.

Dane Rampe in action for Williamstown in the Foxtel Cup.

He finished ninth in the 2014 best and fairest and sixth last year, and earned a spot in Sydney’s leadership group. He’s on track to finish in the top five this season.

“We’ve got a whole bunch of blokes playing good footy,” Rampe said.

“I’m trying not to get caught up in it, we’ve still got a job to do as a team and it’s something I’ll reflect on at the end of the year. It’s paying off individually but I hope it can transform into team success.

“Having five All-Australians reflects very well on the team. Five is a lot but we’ve had so many good contributors like Reg (Heath) Grundy who has had an incredibly consistent year. It speaks volumes for our team’s systems and structures.”