A significant day for AFL race relations

It was a ruck contest just like any other. Two men, both giants in stature, eyed each other from opposite sides of the centre circle and then charged together, bodies clashing, arms reaching, striving to give their respective teams first use of the football.

Hundreds before them have done the same. Since Wills and Harrison became the fathers of football, ruckmen have thrown themselves at each other for the good of their teams.

This was no different, except it was.

Of the many thousand ruck contests to have taken place over the years, this was perhaps the most special. This was the day a boy from Fiji took on a boy from Sudan; not on an anonymous country or suburban ground, not as a part of some sort of exhibition or promotional game, but at elite level, in front of fanatical, wide eyed supporters.

When North Melbourne’s Sudanese recruit Majak Daw lined up opposite West Coast’s Fijian boy wonder Nic Naitanui mid way through the first quarter last Friday night, renowned tough man turned commentator Leigh Matthews admitted to having ‘tingles’.

It was special for a number of reasons, but more than anything it was reflective of how far the AFL has come in a few short years with regards to embracing culture and accepting difference.

There are three significant moments in the history of the AFL/VFL when it comes to race relations.

For the first we must go back to the late 1920s, when a wide eyed Doug Nicholls walked into Princes Park hoping for a game of football.

Nicholls, who was eventually to become Sir Doug Nicholls, a much loved and respected pastor (and Governor of South Australia), was refused a rub down by the Carlton trainers because he was Aboriginal, while the players refused to interact with him as they thought he was ‘smelly’.

Not to be deterred, Nicholls walked out of the club and went onto play several season with Fitzroy (and represented Victoria), but the incident highlights the attitudes of the time and the difficulties faced by indigenous players wishing to play at the highest level.

Between Nicholls and Carlton’s Syd Jackson, who played from 1969 – 76, the indigenous football cupboard appears to be bare.

A look back through the record books confirms as much with Norm McDonald, the lightning fast and silky skilled Essendon player of the 1940s and 50s, being one of the rare exceptions.

Incident number two happened just 20 years ago. On Round 4 of 1993, St. Kilda’s indigenous duo of Nicky Winmar and Gilbert McAdam tore Collingwood apart with pure football ability.

Neither were new to racial taunts, but on this day it spilled over the fence in torrents.

As Winmar walked from the ground he lifted his guernsey and pointed proudly at his black skin beneath. His defiant gesture was captured in what is one of the most famous football photographs of all time and received front page coverage nationwide.

It was the actions of Winmar, coupled with the likes of Michael Long, who had the guts to speak out at a time when it was easier to stay quiet, who provided the catalyst for change.

The AFL’s racial vilification rules would not have been developed and implemented as quickly as they were if not for the acts of these two men.

The third significant moment was, of course, Daw lining up against Naitanui last weekend. Who would have come up with that scenario 20 years ago?

While neither Daw nor Natanui are Aboriginal, it was the indigenous players of the past who paved the way, making the journey to elite level just that little bit easier for today’s budding young stars.

Just like Richmond’s Bachar Houli, who is the game’s first practising Muslim, and the indigenous players that now thrive in the AFL, Daws and Natanui will become role models for those coming from non-traditional football backgrounds.

Racism has always been unfathomable to me. Why one person should be deemed not worthy over another solely because of the colour of their skin or the country of their birth just seems ludicrous.

The old adage of what happens on the field should stay on the field does not apply here.

Being 6 foot 5 inches in the old language and as skinny as a rake, I was often sledged because of my stick like appearance. Some of the sledging became quite nasty, but it was not something that bothered me. In fact I never thought twice about it.

So why should those being racially sledged feel any more aggrieved than me? Easy. I may have been tall and skinny but I was never refused entry to a pub – or a taxi – or had someone cross to the other side of the road to walk past me.

Racism takes things to a whole new level and I can’t even attempt to imagine what effect a lifetime of being exposed to such behaviour must have on a person.

Racism has been around since the dawn of time, and it will be around for a while yet, but the good thing is the reaction to it is changing.

Given this is primarily an article on football, let’s stick to examples that have been drawn from the game itself.

As a kid I remember standing in the outer and hearing Carton players being called wogs. No one in the crowd blinked.

As a young player I remember one of the adults connected with our junior team calling a boy from Papua New Guinea a useless black bastard.

The poor kid had just run off the ground mid quarter as he was frozen solid, thanks to the icy winters that my home town experienced each year. He could hardly move his fingers and he was turning blue, but it brought little sympathy from the adult involved.

The adult was hushed quickly, but I felt it was more out of embarrassment than any sense of concern or wellbeing for the child.

In the outer a few years later I heard a lone voice declare Michael Long was a smelly, black c***. This time the ignorant potty mouth was angrily howled down by the people around him.

Finally the injustice of it all was starting to shine through. It was a good moment.

Their are still pockets of people at AFL matches who think it is ok to racially abuse players, but there are more people around them who think it is not. It is heartening to see game day crowds are beginning to become self regulating when abuse of this nature surfaces.

The AFL has come a long way and is richer for it, but as the indigenous round approaches, let’s stop and pay homage to the young Aboriginal men who, against the odds, made it all happen.