sidelined

It’s summer, so my perusal of the Realfooty page of The Age is sporadic, but it’s a good time of year for thinking about the future. As some of you are aware, the AFL has just conducted its draft picks. The selectors rank the aspirant draftees at national draft camp, just after season’s end, and the clubs line up to choose the kids (and out-of-contract players) they want. First pick this year, Bryce Gibbs, went to wooden spooners, Carlton. Then it cycles through the teams, until Carlton gets another round, and so forth, for about 100 players. Draft picks represent new blood and opportunities, and the way it is weighted to maximise the opportunities for struggling clubs means the AFL has a pretty good turnover of premierships.

This year the number 2 draft pick went to my team, the Essendon Bombers. Essendon’s wily coach Kevin Sheedy has a history of taking a punt on kids and making some radical choices. Sheedy famously went down the list from his allotted choice to pluck the great former captain James Hird, ranked at 75 or 76, out of obscurity. Those choices have lasting effects, not just in football but in society. Sheedy has nurtured generations of Aboriginal talent, including greats like Michael Long who don’t just make it in football, but go home and lead their communities. This year the draft was 20% indigenous. Sheedy’s success with indigenous players came because he worked hard to support their talent by providing the home life that the kids needed so they could reconcile their culture with the demands of sport at senior level. This year Sheedy is turning his attention to a different cultural group. He is taking on pick number 42, Bachar Houli. The first Muslim kid to be selected to play AFL at senior level.

We know Hazem el-Mazri, who plays for NRL side the Canterbury Bulldogs, has been a terrific role model in Sydney. Houli says:

I know that getting drafted is not just about me. It’s important for my community because this has opened something up to them. To see a Muslim go to the AFL, it’s huge for them and for young kids growing up, to see a person can do it if he puts his mind to it and is fully committed.

I’m still young and I know I’m a role model with what I’m doing and my actions. But once I find my place and have more understanding, hopefully I can get out there and pass on my knowledge to the younger boys growing up, wherever their lives are heading and with whatever they aspire to do.

I start at Essendon today. It’s my first day, and I can’t wait. I’m ready for it to start. It will be a great feeling to walk in there and look at the ground, meet all the people and start a new life at my football club.

Read more of Houli’s thoughts here. His dad sounds gorgeous!

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