By JARROD POTTER
PERHAPS the next great indigenous or multicultural footballer was inspired to succeed while listening to some of the AFL’s rising stars talk at Shepley Oval on Friday night.
Melbourne recruit Jay Kennedy-Harris, originally from Endeavour Hills, and former Stingrays’ Billy Hartung (Hawthorn), Nathan Wright and Tom Curren (St Kilda) were on hand to help begin the KickStart and All-Nations Cup try-outs this week.
Run by AFL Victoria, the Kickstart and All Nations programs are designed to give 15-and-under footballers from indigenous and multicultural backgrounds an opportunity to fast track their football development through a highly enjoyable on and off field program.
For Kennedy-Harris the KickStart program gave him his first taste of elite football as a 14-year-old and he encourages all young footballers to get involved.
“It’s an awesome stepping stone and I’m glad I got to be involved in it,” Kennedy-Harris said.
“It helped me get into the TAC Cup system… I came into the system knowing what to expect and how to go about it which made my TAC Cup footy a bit easier.
“You get that many positives out of it – it’s not just the footy, they build really good people and characters so you go there and it’s a lot of fun and you learn about your culture.”
To be eligible for the All Nations Cup Squad, players must have been born overseas and come from a non-English speaking background.
The next stage of the tryouts is a Kickstart/All Nations Cup high performance camp in April, with potential stars able to win selection for the respective teams and compete at the National Indigenous and Multicultural Carnival in Coffs Harbour from 11-17 April.
Players from Beaconsfield Youth Girls Junior Football Club were also on hand to help out with the clinic including recently retired Youth Girls champion and current Melbourne Football Club Women’s footballer Ellie Blackburn.
The Koorie Auskick program also kicked off in Dandenong with more information available by contacting Peter Dye on 9791 8656 or peter.dye@aflvic.com.au.
