200 game milestone looms for UNSW Business student Dane Rampe
Sydney Swans co-captain and UNSW Elite Athlete Program member Dane Rampe will notch his 200-game milestone when he runs out against the Blues.
Sydney Swans co-captain and UNSW Elite Athlete Program member Dane Rampe will notch his 200-game milestone when he runs out against the Blues.
It's a figure the Sydney co-captain thought he would never reach after being overlooked in multiple drafts and falling in and out of love with the game while playing in the VFL.
The 31-year-old even trained with the Western Bulldogs in 2010, and said not being picked up that year ended up a blessing in disguise.
Rampe moved back to Sydney and dominated in the local leagues - playing with the UNSW-Eastern Suburbs Bulldogs - before receiving a call from then-Swans coach Paul Roos.
"Definitely, absolutely (I had doubts)," Rampe said of his AFL dream.
"(I experienced) a couple of knock backs at the draft and two unsuccessful years down in Melbourne.
"Of course those doubts creep in, but one thing I’m proud of is when I got my opportunity, I grabbed it with both hands.
"I was just playing the local leagues around the corner here and Roosy gave me a call and asked if I wanted to play a couple of games in the reserves.
"I did, and I managed to grab it with both hands."
Rampe was rookie-listed by the Swans in 2013 and hasn't looked back, becoming an integral part of the team's defence and snaring an All-Australian place and a best-and-fairest award along the way.