My Story: Dion Prestia opens up on his move to Richmond, his nickname and the best player he’s played with
After starting 2017 5-0, Richmond dropped its next four games, three of which were by under a goal. It left new recruit Dion Prestia momentarily questioning his call to become a Tiger. But the feeling didn’t last long.
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There’s a photo taken almost 10 years ago that always gives me a laugh.
It was of Gold Coast’s draftees, myself included, taken on the beach outside the Kurrawa Surf Club the day after the 2010 national draft.
Tom Lynch is there and while he still has a baby face to this day, in this particular photo he looks about 10 years old.
There is also Josh Caddy, who at that time was rocking his bleached blond hair.
None of us would have ever dreamed we’d be at another club winning a premiership together nine years later.
I’ve known Josh from under-13s when we played in the Diamond Valley rep team together.
We went through the ranks and he was at Northern Knights when I was at the Calder Cannons in the TAC Cup.
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We became teammates at the Suns and then at Richmond at the same time at the end of 2016.
“Lynchy” joined us at Richmond a couple of years later.
I never tried to influence Tom’s decision as I knew first-hand what he was going through, but at the same time I couldn’t help but dream.
I would think: “Gee, imagine having him and Jack Riewoldt roaming the forward line together.”
When he chose Richmond I was rapt and we all saw what he was able to do off no pre-season in 2019 at Tigerland.
I think we’ll see some pretty special years from Lynchy.
The three of us have come a long way together, which is why that photo in 2010 will always bring a smile to my face.
EARLY DAYS AT GOLD COAST
I SPENT most of my draft year in 2010 thinking I wouldn’t be selected.
The taller athletic types seemed to be all the rage at the time, so I didn’t like my chances.
My height was a big knock and clubs questioned whether I’d be able to compete with the taller mids.
I couldn’t do anything about my height, so I always made sure I was one of the fittest as that was something I could control. Same with my skills.
The draft was on the Gold Coast and it wasn’t until I got invited to attend with about 15 others that I thought it was going to happen.
My manager Marty Pask also had Dyson Heppell as a client and there was a bit of talk the night before the draft he would go to Essendon at pick No.8.
That’s where I thought I may have been going and, at the time, joining Essendon would have been amazing.
I probably would still be living at home in Craigieburn had I become a Bomber, but going to Gold Coast was my next choice and they took me one pick later.
I’d finished my exams at Assumption College, the next week I was drafted and two days later I was on the Gold Coast living with a host family.
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SUNS DEBUT
My AFL debut was memorable for a few reasons.
It was Gold Coast’s first game so it was a big occasion, and I was to debut with 11 other players that night.
We all thought we were a fair chance heading into the clash with Carlton at the Gabba, but we were thrashed. It was a fast reality check.
I remember spending some time on Chris Judd, which felt unbelievable as an 18-year-old who had admired him for years.
He once tackled me too high and the umpire blew the whistle.
“I just won a free kick from Chris Judd, that’s unbelievable,” I thought.
My first win came against Richmond and so was my second win the following year in Cairns when Karmichael Hunt goaled after the final siren.
That’s a feeling I’ll never forget, even though Richmond is my team for life now.
They were the only two wins I experienced in my first two seasons.
COMING HOME
I enjoyed the Gold Coast, but the lure of playing for a big Melbourne club had been a lifelong dream.
I grew up in a Demons family and we’d often go to games at the MCG.
I could never really see from our seats, so I’d take a footy with me and often sneak off to the back of the seating section with my cousin for a kick.
As I got older I noticed the atmosphere more and I always wanted to know what that felt like.
The thought of playing in front of the huge Tiger army drew me to Richmond.
That move at the end of 2016 worked itself out in the end.
Richmond was the best deal to get done for the Suns and I did everything I could to let them know of my intentions.
Staying at the Suns remained an option, but I’d spent six years there and had given it a massive crack.
It was time to come home to Melbourne.
A FLAG IN YEAR ONE
I knew things would be different at Richmond when I started getting recognised on Swan St and around town.
You’d get mostly nice comments, as well as an occasional “enjoy finishing ninth every year” from fans of other clubs.
There were also few reports and talk at the time that Richmond should have gone younger and got stuck into rebuilding rather than bringing a player like me in.
The best thing I did was to not listen and really back myself in.
We were 5-0 early on and then went to Adelaide and the Crows smashed us, and then we lost our next three games by less than a goal each.
Here we go again, I thought. That was probably the time when I momentarily started to second guess my decision in coming to Richmond.
But as a club we didn’t panic. After those losses, the biggest influence on what happened next came from Damien Hardwick.
Usually after four losses in a row you’d expect changing of game plans or to start going about some things differently. That never happened at Richmond in 2017.
Throughout my time at the Tigers, the game plan has only been tweaked with minor changes made weekly and monthly.
The positivity and confidence we got from “Dimma” and the rest of our coaching staff was huge, and this was a massive reason why we were able to bounce back.
This is also why it looks like we enjoy playing our footy, because we really do.
We are given every opportunity to show our strengths and just to be ourselves.
In the back end of the season we found another level, had a bit of luck on the injury front and hit September in great shape.
The first final was against Geelong at the MCG and the feeling running out was like nothing I’d ever experienced. I was buzzing with adrenaline and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up as we ran down to the Punt Rd end.
I didn’t think it was possible, but in the twilight preliminary final against GWS Giants it went to another level.
When Kane Lambert goaled in the first 15 seconds, it literally felt like the ground was moving when he ran into that open goal. I’ve got tingles just thinking about it now.
Then came the Grand Final.
Adelaide was the best team all year, but I don’t think any team would have beaten us during that finals series. We hit our peak at precisely the right time.
I couldn’t believe where I was at the moment from 12 months earlier when I was sitting in my hospital bed post knee surgery.
GAZ AND DUSTY
AMONG many other great players, I’ve been fortunate to play with a few flat-out superstars and witnessed both at the peak of their powers.
At the Gold Coast I played with Gary Ablett for six seasons and saw him win his second Brownlow Medal in 2013.
Then in three and a bit seasons at Richmond, I’ve seen Dustin Martin also win a Brownlow and basically everything else.
Sometimes people ask me if I can split them and it’s almost an impossible task.
Although, if I was picking a team and both of them were standing in front of me and I had to choose, I’d pick “Gaz”.
He’d get my slight nod as he was able to do what he did in a team full of kids that never played finals and had little success.
It wasn’t a surprise to see him have 40 touches and kick three goals in a well beaten side, often week in and week out.
We couldn’t get our heads around the fact he was able to perform at such a high level with not much support around him.
Gaz, who is one of the nicest people I’ve met, text me his congratulations after the 2017 Grand Final.
“Enjoy the week and the time with your teammates because it won’t get any better than this feeling,” he said.
He was right.
On the footy side, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a player do all the basics so perfectly. Obviously he does some freakish things, but it was just he never missed a target and did everything amazingly well.
Then there’s “Dusty”, who I was probably a little bit intimidated by when I first walked into Punt Rd.
I’d never spoken to him before and had no idea what he was like, but I got to know him and he’s such a nice person who’d do absolutely anything for his teammates.
The two of them are quite alike in some ways.
Dusty likes to keep to himself, is pretty quiet and totally different to what I expected.
One of his biggest strengths is he’s a big-time player and always finds another gear in September. When the game’s on the line, I just try to get the ball in his hands because I know something special is coming.
When I knew I’d probably be heading to Richmond at the end of 2016, I was nervous reading reports North Melbourne was chasing him hard.
I was praying he would stay and thankfully he did.
HUMAN MEATBALL
These days everyone seems to think the nickname was coined by Brian Taylor.
It was actually given to me by Gold Coast teammate Michael Rischitelli in my first season, back when I was a few kilos heavier than I am now.
He just started calling me “The Human Meatball”, it made its way down to Melbourne and “BT” ran with it.
I went to school with BT’s second-oldest son, Jordan, at Assumption College, and I think that’s why he doesn’t mind pumping me up a fair bit on the commentary.
I don’t mind the nickname.
The best thing is when kids during games or at training yell out “Meatball!”
It’s certainly a good icebreaker at junior clinics.
B&F TIGER
I admit I might have shed one or two tears on the night of last year’s best and fairest awards.
To win a Jack Dyer Medal, especially in a premiership year, was an overwhelming feeling.
On the night they showed previous winners and to just be mentioned in a list with the likes of Dustin Martin and Trent Cotchin was something that got hold of me.
Last year was probably my best year, even though I struggled with my achilles almost the whole season.
We had a few injuries, particularly early on, and my role was just to keep playing, to keep backing up and to get my body as right as possible.
We weren’t flying early or even at the midpoint, so it was about holding on as hard as we could until we got a few more troops back.
The Grand Final itself wasn’t an unknown as most of us had been there in 2017.
We knew how the week would unfold, which was a little edge in itself.
Late in the game we were able to enjoy the moment a bit more than in 2017. We were able to look out into the crowd, take it all in and try to remember as much of it as possible.
I will never forget it.
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Originally published as My Story: Dion Prestia opens up on his move to Richmond, his nickname and the best player he’s played with
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