REMOTE area footballers in the Northern Territory welcomed the chance to play in Darwin at the weekend in the first local Indigenous All-Stars concept match.
It featured the NT Warriors (pictured) and Arnhem Cats, who played a fast-paced skilful match at TIO Stadium in front of a small but enthusiastic crowd.
The match was the clumination of the AFLNT's week-long Healthy Living Carnival.
With football-related programs the vehicle, the AFLNT have partnered with key health and community partners including Danila Dilba Health Service, TIO and Salvation Army to educate and train this select group about the importance of a healthy lifestyle through football.
AFLNT Indigenous programs manager Kevin Bruce said the added emphasis on educational programs and messages was a key aspect of the AFLNT remote projects charter.
"Young men in remote communities love their footy as we know but what we continue to discover is that access to education, employment and health outcomes for these young men is an area of grave concern," said Bruce.
"AFLNT has a responsibility as an organisation to promote and facilitate these programs and messages and to work with the boys to help them understand the importance of healthy living and getting an education to compliment their sporting career."
There were some exciting prospects in both the Warriors and Cats sides. Players in both teams have come from communities that include Galiwinku, Groote Eylandt, Gapuwiyak, Lajamanu, Ngukurr, Wadeye, Hermannsburg, Maningrida and Gove.
"The Arnhem Cats players to watch include Merril Gurruwiwi, an athletic utility who has already played senior football with the Palmerston Magpies and loves a high mark; Basil Bara, a supremely skilled on-baller with a powerful kick and Gerrard Wunungmurra, who finally gets his chance on a big stage having been previously overlooked due to limited resources in Gapuwiyak," Bruce said.
"The NT Warriors boasted Aaron Sharpe, who has dominated AFLCA matches playing for Western Aranda and has already played a handful of senior matches for Thunder; Rowan Bonson, who is a stoppage specialist and works extremely hard to create attacking opportunities; and Louie Narndo, a super quick on-baller who has exquisite skills on both sides of the body."
By using AFL programs as a vehicle, AFLNT have partnered with key health and community partners including Danila Dilba Health Service, TIO and Salvation Army to educate and train this select group about the importance of a healthy lifestyle through football.
The participants from both sides had unrivalled access to elite high performance skill and fitness testing through the expertise of NT Thunder.
"We greatly appreciate the support of Thunder in holding these sessions as many of the boys participating in the carnival have aspirations of playing for Thunder or even AFL football," Bruce said.
"This will expose the boys to the high performance sporting environment and what it takes to succeed at the highest level".
In the game, the Cats took control in the second quarter, outscoring the Warriors four goals to two to head into the second half with a 10-point lead.
But after the break, it was all the Warriors who unleashed a devastating run of seven unanswered goals to head into the final quarter with a 36-point lead to eventually win by 41 points, 15.13 (103) to 9.8 (62).
Bruce said apart from the football, leaders emerged from both sides during the week of the Healthy Living Carnival.
"The entire week was a great success and all who participated are able to take some great health, education and leadership message to their local communities," he said.
"We saw some outstanding leadership qualities emerge from several boys during the week and this was taken onto the field where the game was played in great spirit and in a highly sporting manner.
"We want this to become a permanent part of the NT footy fixture and we look forward to building this important program for many years to come."
Scoreboard
NT Warriors 4.3 (27) 6.6 (42) 13.11 (89) 15.13 (103) defeated
Arnhem Cats 4.2 (25) 8.4 (52) 8.5 (53) 9.8 (62)
Goal Scorers
NT Warriors: Michael Joshua 3, Gerald Longmuir, Billy Huddleston, Ray Dummoo, Aaron Sharpe 2, Cedrick Robertson, Geoffrey Parerolutja, Patrick Abbott. Arnhem Cats: Sylvester Olsen 4, Delwyn Byrnes, Jerimah James 2, Hezekiah Lawrence.
Best-on-Ground
NT Warriors: Basil Barra (Groote Eylandt)
Arnhem Cats: Geoffrey Parerolutja (Hermannsburg)
Healthy Living Carnival Leadership Awards
NT Warriors: Rowan Bonson (Ngukurr)
Arnhem Cats: Hezekiah Lawrenece (Ramingining)
Last Modified on 28/05/2012 18:10