Paul Dimattina (born 22 November 1974) is a former

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

er who represented in the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling the laws of the gam ...

(AFL). Dimattina is of

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

descent and the son of former fruiterer Frank Dimattina. Dimattina played for

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

at Under 19 level as a 16 year in 1991 and was drafted by them with the final selection in the 1991 AFL draft. He played reserves football for them in 1992, but never played an AFL game for Richmond. During 1993 and 1994 he played for

Victorian Football Association The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

(VFA) team

Sandringham Sandringham can refer to: Places * Sandringham, New South Wales, Australia * Sandringham, Queensland, Australia * Sandringham, Victoria, Australia **Sandringham railway line **Sandringham railway station **Electoral district of Sandringham * Sand ...

, as well as some games for the Carlton and Essendon reserves teams. Drafted by the

Footscray Football Club The Western Bulldogs are a professional Australian rules football team that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier competition. Founded in 1877 as the Footscray Football Club, and based in West Footscray in the ...

(later Western Bulldogs) with the 26th selection in the 1995 Pre-season draft, Dimattina made his AFL debut late in the 1995 season. Dimattina was a high possession winner for the Bulldogs throughout his career. He played 131 games for the Bulldogs until he was delisted at the end of the 2003 season.

Post AFL career

In 2005, Dimattina moved to the

Gold Coast, Queensland The Gold Coast is a coastal city in the state of Queensland, Australia, approximately south-southeast of the centre of the state capital Brisbane. With a population over 600,000, the Gold Coast is the sixth-largest city in Australia, the nati ...

, where he played with the

Southport Sharks Southport Australian Football Club, nicknamed the Sharks, is an Australian rules football club based on the Gold Coast, Queensland, that competes in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Southport is one of the most successful football clubs in ...

. He scored six goals and best afield in the Queensland State League Grand Final before retiring from the Sharks and returning to Melbourne.

Post football

Following his football career, Dimattina became involved in the

hospitality industry The hospitality industry is a broad category of fields within the service industry that includes lodging, food and drink service, event planning, theme parks, travel and tourism. It includes hotels, tourism agencies, restaurants and bars. Sector ...

. He and his family own and run the Dimattina's and Il Gambiro restaurants in

Lygon Street Lygon Street is located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, running through the inner northern suburbs of Carlton, Carlton North, Princes Hill and Brunswick East. Lygon Street is synonymous with the Italian community of Melbourne, forming t ...

, Carlton, Society Restaurant in Melbourne City, the Blue Train cafe at Southgate in Southbank, as well as two restaurants on the Gold Coast, Queensland.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dimattina, Paul 1974 births Living people Australian rules footballers from Victoria (Australia) Australian people of Italian descent Sandringham Football Club players Southport Australian Football Club players Western Bulldogs players People educated at Marcellin College, Bulleen 21st-century Australian businesspeople Australian food industry businesspeople