Collingwood: Wangaratta’s Joe Richards makes AFL debut against West Coast
Joe Richards has been forced to make AFL ranks the hard way from country footy and two seasons ruined by Covid. Read his inspiring story.
Joe Richards was stuck in no-man’s land – a young country footballer aspiring to crack the elite level.
With next to no interest from AFL clubs in his draft year, Richards went to work at Wangaratta Magpies where he kicked 11 goals in only his third Ovens & Murray senior match, aged 16.
The small forward had a senior premiership medal and the first of three club best and fairests by the end of 2018.
But still no takers.
Another brilliant season for Wangaratta came and went in 2019, that ended in grand final defeat to Lavington, which had Geelong mature-age draftee Shaun Mannagh doing a number on Richards and his mates with five goals in a brilliant, best-afield performance.
But the biggest hurdle was still to come for Richards – the Covid pandemic, that wiped out country footy for two years.
Entering 2022, the clock was ticking for Richards to make the big time.
Collingwood premiership player Ben Reid had taken over as Wangaratta coach and noticed early in pre-season training that Richards had not let his dream die.
“He trained at a level that was well above what country players normally train at,” Reid said.
“All the running stuff we did he would be well and truly ahead of the rest.
“It’s an unbelievable story because he’s had to do the hard yards.”
Proof of his determination to keep improving, Richards was the first at Saturday morning training sessions Wangaratta organised over the 2021-22 summer to improve goalkicking.
Payday on those extras came when Richards booted crucial goals at the start of last quarter of the 2022 O&M grand final which Wangaratta won before the flag was stripped due to a salary cap bust.
Collingwood recruiting manager Derek Hine was at the grand final and two months later Richards was finally on an AFL list, taken in the national draft at pick No.48.
Richards’ flying start to 2022 also meant he was one of the first selected in the O&M interleague team by coach Damian Sexton, who himself had been recruited from Yarrawonga to St Kilda in the late 1980s.
Richards starred in a demolition job on the Goulburn Valley and suddenly interest piqued from multiple AFL clubs.
“He just stood out, along with others,” Sexton said.
“But he had that ability to play well in a big game which is pretty important in where he has got to.
“My observation is AFL list managers want to see boys who aren’t just backyard bullies.
“They want to see them play against players with similar ability and see if they’ve got the mental aptitude to perform.
“Once you get to AFL level I still believe 70 per cent of it is above the shoulders.”
Wangaratta Magpies’ star forward and former coach Jon Henry played with the 24-year-old’s father, Rob.
Henry said Joe didn’t let Covid destroy his dream despite the disappointment of no matches.
“You could see why he didn’t get drafted early on,” Henry said.
“He was small and pretty light, but he got into the gym in those couple of years and just got his body a lot stronger.
“It shows now with the way he tackles and chases.”
Henry also credits a lot of Richards’ rise to Wangaratta’s games record-holder, Daine Porter, who is also a former work colleague of Richards at Wangaratta District Specialist School.
“Daine has been a great mentor for Joe,” Henry said.
“His whole mindset is about working harder and never complaining.
“It’s rubbed off and in 2022 when he started getting tagged, Joe didn’t come to us and say, ‘You need to look after me’.
“He just found a way through it.
“It’s also pretty grounding to work with disadvantaged kids.”
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