- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
I’ve noticed recently the increased promotion of AFL by the ABC on radio and television in Sydney. I don’t know if this is intentional or not, but it certainly is getting more noticeable.
Let me give you a couple of recent examples.
The other morning, I switched on 702 ABC Sydney: the “What’s on” segment listing events happening in Sydney on the weekend. In amongst all the usual Sydney attractions was a lengthy mention of AusKick (AFL) Registrations as an event “not to be missed this weekend”.
Since when is AusKick registration a major event in Sydney?
And what about the thousands of other registration days for football, rugby, rugby league and netball happening in Sydney this past couple of weeks?
Why were they not mentioned by the ABC as well?
I should declare my hand at this point. As mentioned previously, I am a junior football coach and on the committee of a very successful and growing football club in Sydney’s North West, so I notice what the opposition are up to.
Let me also recount the recent Carols night and fireworks display in the week leading up to Christmas in my local neighbourhood. The Carols night was sponsored and funded by my local council. Smack bang in the middle of the oval was an AFL AusKick tent selling AFL AusKick registrations.
The deal was five bucks to register and they threw in a bag of goodies including a football, cap and T-shirt.
The best part was yet to come – the local NAB branch was also throwing in a free twenty dollar Children’s NAB Savings Account. So effectively, they were paying mums fifteen bucks for their kids to play AusKick this year.
Also, recently in the evening’s ABC Sydney television news, the lead sports story was about the growing number of people playing AFL in South Africa and mentored by former Swan Mick O’Loughlan, who also met with Desmond Tutu.
South Africa, of course, is where this year’s FIFA World Cup is being played, and we all well know the AFL’s opposition to the FIFA World Cup being staged in Australia and how Frank Lowy met up with Desmond Tutu.
I was watching an ABC/Federal government funded movie the other night about illegal immigrants arriving on the coast of Australia and how they were trying to avoid the police. Of course, the police were carrying around a Sherrin and were kicking it about at every opportunity.
An guess what game the local Aborigines were playing? They even used the Sherrins as pillows in the back of the Paddy Wagon.
We seem to be keep getting constant reminders on the ABC about AFL.
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.