Michael Newton says he will retire as a Wangaratta player

Newton, who turns 33 in April, intends to play at least two more years.

"I'm not going to retire from the O and M and go and play bush footy," he said.

"I just enjoy the facilities we've got at the Ovens and Murray level, the grounds, the standard of the footy."

The former AFL forward's praise for the league is an ideal advertisement from one of its highest profile players.

And after joining the Pies in 2016 from SANFL outfit Norwood, Newton also has a huge opinion of the club.

"The club itself is moving in a very good direction," he said.

"My partner Issy (Byrne, a two-time premiership player) is involved in the netball, so I can't see myself going anywhere.

"I'd prefer to stick around for a couple of years, even if it means playing reserves for a couple of years. I'd rather play Ovens and Murray reserves, stick around and teach a few kids what they should do and what not to do."

Pies' officials will be hoping though that's at least a few years off as Newton will be pivotal to the club's hopes of reversing successful grand final losses to Albury (2018) and Lavington.

"Losing one grand final is hard to swallow, to lose another one is a bitter pill to swallow," he said.

"It really gives you that extra drive."

Wangaratta had beaten Lavington on all three occasions last year, racking up an average winning margin of 28 points.

But the Panthers blew the match apart in the first quarter, kicking 6.6 to 0.1 to realistically steal the title.

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"The previous couple of outings we went out and beat them in most areas," Newton admitted.

"When they got the jump on us we were a bit shellshocked and before we knew it, we were 41 points down."

Newton admits the loss of reliable ruckman Zac Leitch to suspension was a massive blow.

"We thought we would be able to cover it, but we were in strife as (Tim) Hanna's a big boy and players like (Marty) Brennan were able to get first use of it from Timmy."