Patrick is one of a select few who has umpired three VFL grand finals before being promoted to the AFL, having officiated the 2015, 2016 and 2017 grand finals at Etihad Stadium.
Patrick umpired 86 VFL games and the VFL Reserves grand final in 2014. His promotion to the AFL together with being part of such an exciting VFL grand final in 2017 are two career highlights to date.
The most influential person on his career has been VFL boundary coach Matthew Vitiritti. “I had a few ups and downs during my time at the VFL but Vitters always gave me heaps of support and kept pushing me in the right direction so l owe a lot to him.”
Patrick puts his ability to read the play and his throws as his best attribute as a boundary umpire. His advice for up and coming umpires is that if you believe you can make it, just keep going for it and don’t let setbacks stop you.
Patrick has just finished his internship as Nuclear Medicine Technologist and is currently looking for a full-time job. In addition to umpiring, Patrick loves to play golf and go to the footy as much as he can. In fact, few people know but Patrick is a single figure golf handicapper.
Article written by: AFLUA Marketing and Communications Coordinator, Peter Kelly