JOE D’Agostino can only be described as one thing when speaking of the International Soccer Club or soccer in the Limestone Coast – a true legend of the sport.
With an A Grade career which spanned across almost four decades and 21 premierships to his name, the quick-footed Italian is believed to have played over 750 games for the black and blue – easily a club record.
D’Agostino also gave back to his beloved Inter and has served as treasurer and vice president, along with coaching juniors and served two terms as president, concluding at the end of 2016.
With countless accomplishments in his fruitful career, D’Agostino was recently bestowed with his greatest award, induction into the International Soccer Club hall of fame.
D’Agostino remains modest in all his achievements, including this one, but his most recent award has found a place close to his heart.
“It is one of those things that as a sports person you sort of don’t think about when you first start,” he said.
“All through my career I never placed too much on personal achievement awards.
“I think they are great, but you know, top goal scorer, best and fairest, it is really only an award.
“I think if you play a team sport, it is about the team winning and the premierships we won and the success we had.
“But I must admit, this here was something.”
He said it is the recognition from his peers, club and the soccer community which he is truly honoured by.
“I am honoured to be amongst those who are there already and those who are going to come in the future,” D’Agostino said.
Migrating to the country by boat when he was just three years old, D’Agostino had little exposure to the sport he learned to love during his early years.
“Growing up as a young Italian migrant, there was no TV when I was young and you didn’t see much soccer,” he said.
“But my cousins came out from overseas and came with this soccer ball.
“I mucked around with football (Australian Rules) a little bit at school, but never really took to it.
“But when that round ball came along I just seemed to love it and loved what I could do with it.”
With no soccer goals at his primary school, D’Agostino and his friends would use the AFL point posts as goals, ducking and weaving around those playing football.
“You would have three on three, four on four, five on five, running around in a half circle trying to score,” he said.
“That’s how I remember playing at North Gambier Primary School.”
When television came along, D’Agostino and his family would watch the match-of-the-day broadcast from England and his love for the sport began to flourish.
“I bought the books called Scorcher and Shoot and started reading those and I started following teams overseas,” he said.
“It just grew on me.
“I told my wife when we got married, ‘you don’t have to worry about a mistress, but soccer is going to be the one you have to put up with’.”
His love for the sport was only fuelled by the fact he was good at it, playing his first season in the Under 15’s in 1970, which included some B Grade matches.
The following year D’Agostino made his debut in the senior side at just 15 years of age, which began a 37-year A Grade career.
He went on to receive many of the top accolades in the sport, including the Camillo Gatto Medal for league best and fairest, two player-of-the-year awards, four A Grade best and fairests and four runners-up, as well as league top goal scorer on six occasions.
He also represented the league at state level for over 15 years, many of those as captain of the side.
Through it all D’Agostino kept a level head and played the game in the true spirit and fairness he believed it deserves.
In fact, D’Agostino only ever received a single red card, which was later overturned after he was mistaken for his younger brother Tony.
“I don’t like winning if I don’t win fair,” he said.
“If I knew I was winning and it wasn’t the right way of winning, I didn’t like that.”
He played the game as it is meant to be played – clean, fair and and with plenty of passion.
“Did I get angry? Did I get upset? Of course I did,” D’Agostino said.
“I played with passion like most players and with my background being Italian, I had a lot of passion.
“But I never tried to push that line.”
Tony D’Agostino, who is six years younger than his brother, started his coaching career when Joe was still playing A Grade.
Tony freely admits his brother was the better player and he is one of Joe’s biggest admirers.
He could not see a better suitor for the prestigious award.
“It is really well-deserved,” Tony said.
“When you talk to other players of his era, if you ask who the best player they have seen play, inevitably his name will come up.
“And that is from the opposition.”
Tony also marvelled in the fairness Joe brought to his game.
“The story about him getting sent off is funny because he never got sent off, he never got in trouble with referees,” he said.
“He used to get annoyed when players were dirty on him.
“In his later years the crowd used to get onto him about being old and he just scored more goals.
“It took them a long time to learn not to sledge him, because the more they did, the more he wanted to prove them wrong.”
With so many achievements to his name, the rewards Joe D’Agostino speaks most fondly of were the team accomplishments and the people he was able to play with during his time.
“Of course winning the Camillo Gatto Western Border medal would have to be up there, because that again is a recognition from the league,” he said.
“And having the opportunity and the privilege to play with some of the greats who have come through this area was great.
“But if you boil it all down, it is just what this club has given back to me.
“It has allowed me to express myself on the soccer pitch and to win those premierships and to be a part of this history in the hall of fame is amazing.”
When asked of his secret to such a long career, D’Agostino said it was the “determination, family support and passion” which kept him going.
He also put it down to luck, as he was not burdened with serious injuries.
“I loved the sport so much, but the support from my family is the number one,” D’Agostino said.
“My wife Mena was involved in the club too and ended up on the committee and served as treasurer herself for nine years straight.”
The support from Mena and his daughter Cristina is something he looks back on fondly and of course his brother Tony is another who provided unwavering support.
“He was the one person I could go to and I knew he was going to be honest,” D’Agostino said.
“I’d go ‘Tony, do you think I did alright today?’ and he would be honest.
“That encouragement really kept me going.”
With plenty of change to the game of soccer over his lifetime, D’Agostino remains as passionate about the sport as ever.
“It has changed, but I still love watching it,” he said.
“I love watching what the young guys are doing now.
“Just watching them and their passion, it is amazing to see how far it has come.”
