Ever since his rape conviction, two scandalous rumours about Tom Silvagni have been running rife in Melbourne's private school and sporting circles.

The claims, repeated often among the city's well-connected gossips, are that Silvagni faced two significant disciplinary issues while a student at prestigious eastern-suburbs private school Xavier College.

The first was that he had been reprimanded for using illicit drugs. The second was that there was an 'incident' involving a young woman during a Schoolies trip.

For months, Xavier College would not been drawn into the gossip.

Now, the school has set the record straight after the Daily Mail contacted them about the claims, which were first published by a local news outlet before the article was deleted without explanation.

All that remains of that article is a URL reading 'tom-silvagni-expelled-from-xavier-college-for-alleged-drug-use'; the page itself has not been archived and now displays the message 'page not found'.

Shane Healy, Xavier's operations and community director, denied all of the Mail's questions about Silvagni's alleged behaviour as a student.

We asked if it was a fact that Silvagni had been suspended or expelled for drugs, or if there was any truth to the claims about a Schoolies incident.

Xavier refuted both allegations, saying that Silvagni was never disciplined for any Schoolies matter, nor was he sanctioned for drug use or possession while attending the Kew school, where annual fees reach up to $45,000. 

'There is nothing in our records that provides any information that any of the matters you've raised have any veracity at all,' Mr Healy, the former general manager of talkback station 3AW, said in a statement to the Mail.

Whether this denial will do anything to silence the gossip that has been circulating among football circles, media types and private school parents remains to be seen.

As for why the article on Silvagni's alleged expulsion was deleted, one can only surmise that the image‑conscious school challenged its accuracy.

Silvagni's place at the elite school was all but guaranteed, given he is the son of Carlton legend Stephen Silvagni and TV presenter Jo Bailey.

He attended the college before his dreams of following his brother Jack and his famous father into AFL were dashed by his lack of talent.

He later became a junior sports agent, but that career unravelled after he was accused and later convicted of raping a young woman who was dating his friend.

Since launching an appeal, his home has been Melbourne Assessment Prison - a feared facility better known as 'The Map'.

Silvagni, 23, was sentenced in the Victorian County Court in December to a maximum of six years and two months, with a non-parole period of three years and three months, after he was found guilty of two counts of rape.

He was wearing the recognisable green jumper uniform of The Map when he learned his fate via video link. 

The attack for which Silvagni was convicted occurred on January 14, 2024, in a bedroom at the Balwyn North mansion owned by his famous parents. 

He was found guilty after the court heard the victim had arrived at the house shortly after midnight, having been invited there by the accused's girlfriend, Alannah Iaconis.

A drinking session had taken place earlier, but by 12.23am only Silvagni, Iaconis, and his former best friend Anthony LoGiudice, with whom the victim was in a casual sexual relationship, were still present.

The jury heard the victim had consensual sex with Mr LoGiudice - known as Mr B during the trial - in an upstairs bedroom.

At 1.58am, Mr LoGiudice, a close relative of former Carlton president Mark LoGiudice, left in an Uber, arriving at his home at 2.09am.

Silvagni then deceived the woman, falsely claiming that Mr LoGiudice's Uber had been cancelled and that he would be returning upstairs.

Instead, Silvagni entered the darkened bedroom himself, climbed into the bed, and impersonated Mr LoGiudice before digitally raping the woman twice.

Part of the police investigation was a 'pretext call' - a phone call set up between the complainant and the person under investigation.

The purpose of the call, a common investigative procedure in sexual offences probes, is to see if detectives can glean 'incriminating conduct' from their suspect.

Silvagni appealed his rape conviction on the basis that Judge Greg Lyon 'erred' in determining that the statements made by him to the victim in the pretext call 'were capable of constituting evidence of incriminating conduct'.

He also asserts that Judge Lyon 'erred in his directions to the jury' concerning 'the permissible use to which the evidence relied upon as incriminating conduct might be put by the jury'.

The appeal, which was lodged on January 9, is yet to be listed. While the court confirmed the matter was still pending, it remains unknown how long Silvagni will have to remain in The Map before he has his day in court again.

According to jail insiders, arriving in the real-life purgatory that is The Map can be a brutal wake‑up call.

The reality is starkly isolating, with many prisoners confined to their cells for up to 23 hours a day.

The notorious remand facility has housed other high-profile prisoners, including Cardinal George Pell, who was placed in a special unit for his protection due to his notoriety and 2018 conviction for abusing two choirboys in the 1990s.

Cardinal Pell's convictions for historical child sexual offences were quashed when he was acquitted by Australia's highest court in 2020. He died in 2023, aged 81.

Silvagni lacks the status of the late Pell - but his famous name in Melbourne would surely place a target on his back and justify placement in the same protection unit.

From the confines of his cell, he would likely be unable to see his fellow prisoners.

However, he would likely still hear the distress and unrest of other inmates, including those experiencing withdrawal from drugs such as methamphetamine and heroin.

As it is primarily a remand prison, inmates have fewer activities and self-development programs than in other facilities, often spending their days in boredom and isolation.

The conditions at The Map are a far cry from the privileged life Silvagni had grown accustomed to before he fronted court for his highly publicised rape trial.

The youngest of three sons, Silvagni grew up with a silver spoon in his mouth as he attended prestigious Xavier College.

Silvagni - whose older brother Jack now plays for St Kilda after 128 games with their father's former club, Carlton - was given every opportunity to become a professional footballer, but ultimately failed to make the grade.

One suburban league footballer who played against Silvagni told the Daily Mail he wasn't particularly good, even at the lower level.

Silvagni later secured a role as a junior AFL player manager and appeared to enjoy a glamorous lifestyle, including a relationship with Miss World Australia finalist Alannah Iaconis.

Ms Iaconis supported Silvagni during the trial but now seems to have moved on with her life since his conviction.

Few Melbourne stories are as dramatic as Tom Silvagni's, whose journey took him from bar-hopping socialite to inmate, eating basic meals with a plastic spoon.