Essendon leading the academy charge towards building bridges between remote NT communities and the AFL
GREY MORRIS, NT News
August 24, 2016 6:35am
ESSENDON’S general manager of football Rob Kerr knows there is no easy pathway from the bush to the big smoke for young indigenous footballers.
Kerr and the Bombers are one of five AFL clubs involved in the establishment of Next Generation Academies across the Northern Territory.
Essendon have the West Arnhem and Tiwi Islands, Collingwood the Barkly region, Geelong is in East Arnhem, Hawthorn in Katherine and Melbourne at Alice Springs.
The aim is to build sporting and educational bridges between remote communities, grassroots football and the elite level that is the AFL.
The Bombers have been a football presence in the Top End since the mid 1980s when long serving coach Kevin Sheedy brought them to Darwin to play in the annual Australia Day fixture against a combined NTFL side.
And while the Long, Rioli and of late, the Tipungwuti families, are big parts of the Essendon fabric, solving cultural differences remains a big part of guiding young indigenous players through the complexities of big city life.
“Once the kids get to 16 years of age, if there is a talented boy or girl, do we bring them into Darwin as a first step before they make the transition to Melbourne?’’ Kerr said.
“At the pointy end of the program (where we) develop the really talented kids, there’s going to have to be a lot of work put into that transition piece.
“So there’s cultural differences, but there is also an advantage up here in the NT in that there is a pretty strong commitment to the game of Australian football.’’
Kerr said the next generation program was a fantastic opportunity for AFL clubs to build closer relationships with communities in the Northern Territory.
“Our goal is to give kids an opportunity through sport to develop themselves and educate them and at the pointy end of it, we’re also interested in talent outcomes.
“And there is a really strong desire to maintain the relationship we have with Tiwi. Essendon’s had a relationship with them for more than next decade.
“You go back to the ‘90s and Kevin Sheedy brought Essendon up here to play matches in the pre-season, so we’ve had a pretty strong tradition with the Longs and Riolis and we hope over time there’s more names that join that list.’’
Kerr agrees there is a lot for both parties to learn. The tyranny of distance and using education as a vehicle to pursue their footy loom as two big learning curves.
The Bombers will be allowed to bid for young players who come through their academy, provided they meet the necessary criteria.
“If there is a talented boy or girl there, we’ll have the ability to first nominate them and list them and at the end of the day encourage the kids to enjoy and love the game and hopefully some of them will build a career out of it,’’ Kerr said.
