Everybody loves a redemption story.
Serving personal justice by conquering an internal armageddon, emptying a poisoned chalice to refill it with sweet nectar from the fruits of hard work — that’s redemption.
And perhaps no-one understands it more than Shepparton’s Rob Conte.
The 22-year-old claimed the Victorian Amateur Boxing League (VABL) light heavyweight state title at the weekend, leaving behind a life of drugs and crime which cruelled him throughout his teenage years.
Conte fought Xavier Clarke at the Mercure Hotel, Ballarat, winning by unanimous decision after a flawless display on the canvas, forcing his opposition into two standing counts throughout the fight.
The fighter, who trains at Murf’s Boxing Club under owner Dale Murphy, was “over the moon” to feel his arm lift and waist bejewelled with a belt which signified far more than a victorious boxing match.
He was finally a champion.
Conte could hardly believe the scenes once he’d won, leaving behind a murky past to punch on with life the right way.
“It wasn’t as cut and dry as it all seemed,” he said.
“I was in and out of jail for a while there – I started off when I went into foster care at a young age. I got involved in drugs and crime and then I got out.
“I messaged Murf, I saw he was running boxing, and since then I really haven’t looked back and haven’t stepped a foot out of line.
“The routine and the discipline, and at the end wearing the belt, it’s good to be able to see your hard work paying off.”
Murphy noted Conte’s opposition “had a fair rap on him”, and with Clarke hailing from Ballarat, the home crowd was at his back.
It wouldn’t have mattered, with the ‘’Italian Stallion’’ bobbing and weaving his way to win in a fight which could well have ended earlier with Conte deserving of a technical knockout according to Murphy.
Striking pay dirt inside the ring on Saturday was the culmination of countless hours in the gym for the Shepparton fighter, who first came under Murphy’s tutelage eight months ago.
He was 20kg heavier than he is now, but the metaphorical burden he was in dire need of shedding was much weightier than any adipose tissue hanging around the fringes.
“When he first came to me, he was just a kid who’d come off the streets in Frankston,” Murphy said.
“He’s been in jail since he was 13 or 14, he’d been in a lot of trouble and got into the wrong things like drugs and hanging out with the wrong people.
“He’s come good, he’s really taken boxing by the throat.
“He just loves it, and you just see it’s changed his whole personality, his whole outlook in life.
“He’s starting to love people – he’s not hating people now – and it’s just great to watch him develop. He certainly has swung it, that’s for sure.”
Conte said his mentor had played a supporting role in helping him avoid any tailspinning throughout his boxing journey.
A “tough” coach who “shoots straight down the line” is precisely what the 22-year-old needs, and he’ll again call on Murphy’s discipline in the lead up to his next fight on July 22.
Conte will meet Dave Goodwin at Cobram’s Apex Centre in a VABL title bout for the regional cruiserweight belt and, should Shepparton’s own lift his arm once more, it will power him an inch closer to his dream of becoming professional.
“I’m looking forward to that, I’m looking to try and get some sponsors hopefully as well, and hopefully get my first regional title under my belt,” Conte said.
“I really want to be an inspiration for kids doing it hard that think there’s no way out to do better for themselves, like I have.”