Former Victorian listed quick Matt Fotia has spoken on his delisting as a mature-age prospect

Recently delisted Victorian quick Matt Fotia has opened up about his pursuit of a cricket career at 28 and how the consequences are just “all part of the story”.

Matt Fotia bowls for Ringwood.

Sipping on a coffee and explaining his working predicament, Matt Fotia asked: “it’s all just part of the story, isn’t it?”

The recently-delisted Victorian quick is on the hunt for his next job after going all-in on a cricket career at age 28.

After taking 49 Victorian Premier Cricket wickets in the 2022-23 season, Fotia earned a one-year deal with the Vics.

He gave up his Social Media and Community Engagement role at Netball Australia to pursue his dream of playing first-class cricket.

But after a season that didn’t go his way, he’s tightening up his resume to get back into work.

Fotia was disappointed but said he “understood the concept of a one-year deal” and would do it all again.

“I am in a transition period where I need to find employment but that’s the risk I took and I wouldn’t say no if I was offered a deal again,” he said.

“It’s not the list manager’s role to look at that in the scheme of things but I guess that’s why you do hear fables of blokes turning contracts down, now I sort of get it.

“But I was never not going to say no to it, it was a great year to be a professional cricketer and I got close to some people I wouldn’t have if I wasn’t.”

Matt Fotia bowls for Ringwood.

The golden summer that led Fotia to earning his deal followed a year riddled with injury.

He felt his age and recent injuries meant his chances at state level were over and allowed him to play for Ringwood with a sense of freedom.

But that changed as soon as he was put on the books.

“I bowled shithouse in the Second XI game at Greenvale and that was the first time I had done that in a Second XI game, not just not taking wickets, I got pogoed,” he said.

“It was different because all of the other times I have played Second XI, I had come in in form, whereas this one I was getting picked, not that I wasn’t bowling well, but because I was contracted.

“I tried to fix stuff whereas in previous years you just stick to what works – but it was my job, so that’s when I started thinking too much about it.

“You sort of bowl like you have something to lose rather than in previous years, if I bowled badly, it was like ‘oh well’.

“I wasn’t thinking ‘I have to bowl well to keep my job’, it was ‘I have a week off work to play cricket so show them I am good enough’.”

Fotia bowls for Vic Seconds. Picture: Chris Thomas

The fast bowler still had a strong year for Ringwood, capturing slightly less wickets but beating his economy and bowling more maidens.

Still, Fotia said he had “done the math” late in the season and expected to be cut.

“I had that sinking feeling in the back of my mind and then I got a message saying ‘can we catch-up for coffee Wednesday morning?’” he said.

“I said to Kate (his wife) ‘this has got public break up written all over it’ – she was thinking the same but was trying to stay positive for me.

“I walked up to my local cafe and to their credit they told me straight away that the directive was to get players to play for Australia.

“That was March 27 from memory and I got married on April 6 so it wasn’t the greatest of timings.

“I gave myself four days to be a miserable so and so, then I had to turn the corner – I could see she didn’t want to tell me off for being miserable.

“I got over it and we had the greatest day.”

Fotia said he lived “adjacent” to his dream.Picture: Stuart Milligan

Although appreciative of his opportunity, Fotia conceded he wanted to play with his teammates, not share the gym with them.

“A few people have said ‘oh at least you got to live out your dream’ but I didn’t really … I got to live adjacent to it,” he joked.

“In the exit meeting, they said ‘you’ll look back on this year really fondly’ but I thought ‘yeah, in 10 years, not next week’.

“I have definitely moved on from it, I am not mopey or anything like that but when people point out I got to live my dream, I tell them I got really close to it.

“I got to watch it, I was right there … I still could, you never know.”