After another outstanding round of AFL footy, the Indigenous Round was once again overshadowed by an issue that, like most things in football, was blown out of proportion.
Adam Goodes is one of the greatest players to play the game. He will go straight into the AFL Hall of Fame as soon as he is eligible, which is four years after retirement.
He is also very proud of his heritage and of the Indigenous Round. He was so proud to wear his Swans jumper for this occasion, which was specifically designed by his mother, Lisa Sansbury.
To honour the round, Goodes and Lewis Jetta had decided before the match against Carlton on Friday night that whoever kicked a goal first would do a dance. Or, as has been described, albeit unfairly in my opinion, a war cry.
Goodes did and then celebrated as promised towards the crowd, with what he has admitted was a war cry that he learnt from the Under-16 Boomerangs team.
Maybe the war cry was a poor choice of words, but I don’t believe the action was. Goodes has been racially abused by AFL crowds throughout his career, like many Indigenous players sadly. Most of them have said nothing and suffered in silence and been embarrassed to embrace their culture, but Goodes has continued to lead from the front.
In many ways this was his version of one of the most famous forms of entertainment performed by a sporting team before a sports event, the Haka by the New Zealand All Blacks, which is a Maori war cry. There’s that phrase again. As I have said I don’t like it, but what’s the old saying?, when in Rome do as the Romans do.
The Haka is always applauded by rugby union fans and I suppose that’s because we know when the All Blacks are playing an international they will always perform it.
Critics in the media of Adam Goodes on Friday night thought he looked aggressive and it offended some supporters. What about all the Indigenous players who have been offended by comments because of the colour of their skin? How do you think they feel?
Goodes is proud of his heritage and what indigenous footballers have done for this great game.
What Goodes did was new and unexpected. How good would it be if it became a regular fixture of the Indigenous Round. This has become an integral part of the AFL calendar and if war cries, jigs, dances or whatever you want to call them were part of it, so be it.
Congratulations to Adam Goodes. Not only is he a great footballer, he is a special person that we should all be proud of, so can we please talk about the wonderful footy being played on the field and not make mountains out of molehills?
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.
Not a single Swan acknowledged Sam Wicks' second goal against Hawthorn on Sunday, with the apparent snub coming after he was left out of…
There's some high standards at Sydney!
Wouldn't want to be Jack Scrimshaw right now!
We’re taking a look at one player from each team that needs to make a difference this week, starting with the ANZAC Day games.
The AFL Players' Association has come out swinging against the league for their decision to hand Port Adelaide forward a three-match suspension for using…
Overreacting to a single loss is one of the most overplayed scenarios in sport, but it’s important for the Swans to still believe that…
