From a prominent farming family in the small Western Australian wheatbelt community of Kukerin, Ditchburn moved to Perth in the mid-1970s, where he played WANFL football for Claremont.
He was nearly cleared back to Western Australia at mid-season, but was instead moved to full-forward where he had much greater success.
In Round 16, his third senior VFL game, he kicked twelve goals from full-forward,[2] and was able to cement a regular place in the team for the rest of the season.
Ditchburn returned to Kukerin after the 1983 season, in large part because his father was becoming ill, and he resumed his place on the family farm where he has continued to work since.
[8] He became heavily involved in the local community later in his life as a Shire of Dumbleyung councillor and deputy president.