Vergona began umpiring Australian rules football in Melbourne's suburban leagues during the mid-1960s.
A fringe umpire during most of the 1970s, Vergona spent much of his time in the reserves until securing a regular senior position in 1980.
[1] Easily recognisable due to his short stature (5'3"), tight shorts and oiled legs and noted for his bold umpiring personality, Vergona soon become a popular cult figure in the VFA;[2] and he is often considered alongside many of the VFA's great players as one of the personalities synonymous with the popular and marketable era enjoyed by the VFA during the 1970s.
[4] He umpired a total of just over 250 VFA games over a seventeen-year stretch between 1973 and 1989, retiring after the VFA's umpires board came under the direction of the VFL.
[4] Outside umpiring, Vergona earned his living as a teacher at Dandenong High School as well as some of Geelong and Melbourne's top private schools, best known as a long-serving Latin teacher at Xavier College Kew and Melbourne Grammar School.