Ion made his league debut at just 17 years of age, against Melbourne at Western Oval in 1958.
[1] A key forward despite his small stature, he kicked 27 goals in 1961 to finish third in Footscray's goal-kicking.
[2] When Ted Whitten was away playing interstate football, Ion captained Footscray in their round 13 fixture against North Melbourne - he was only 20 years old at the time.
[1] In 1962 he again played every game for Footscray, and also kicked three goals in an appearance for the VFL representative team which defeated Western Australia.
[4] His final season, in 1965, was interrupted by a four-week suspension for striking Geelong's Ian Scott, but they were the only games he missed that year.