NAIDOC week has allowed Port Adelaide’s Aboriginal AFL Academy team to shed a light on some of the female influences in their lives while presenting a cultural awareness session to staff at Energy Australia in Melbourne.

The Aboriginal AFL Academy (AAA) travels interstate annually to give participants an opportunity to experience what it is like to play an away game like an AFL team would.

22 players from the 35-person academy made the trip to Melbourne this year along with eight support staff, with a game against Parkdale Secondary College the main focus of the trip.

“Karl Amon’s mum is the Indigenous leader at that school so we played them last year and have formed a bit of a partnership between the academies,” Aboriginal AFL Academy Programs Coordinator Marlon Motlop told portadelaidefc.com.au.The relationship with Parkdale came about through a connection to Power player Karl Amon.

“We ended up having a good win by 13 or 14 goals so it was a good day out after we beat them by about 10 goals last year.

“They’re pretty early in the stages of their football academy and had a few players out but hopefully over the next couple of years they strengthen their academy.”

Tyrone Milera was named Best on Ground.

Milera is the brother of Adelaide Crow Wayne Milera, who was himself a former Academy member.

During the trip to Melbourne the Academy members got to head to the MCG to watch Essendon take on Collingwood, but also got to sit in on the filming of television shows AFL 360 and the Marngrook Footy Show.

Another trip to the MCG saw the group undertake a tour of the stadium as well as a Koori Heritage Walk and Cultural Tour.

The most eye-opening part of the tour was a visit to major sponsor Energy Australia to mingle with staff, have a morning tea and a training session with staff.

The group also ran a cultural awareness session, discussing Indigenous culture in NAIDOC week.

“The big focus of the week was the focus on NAIDOC week with the theme “Because of her we can” so we presented to about 200 staff members at Energy Australia,” Motlop said.

“Myself and (Powerful Futures Program Coordinator) Braedon Talbot facilitated the sessions but the academy members also presented.

“We discussed some prominent women from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australia and we profiled some influential females from our academy members’ lives and it was a pretty powerful session.”

The AAA students complete a Certificate III in Fitness in their first year and Stage 2 in Aboriginal Studies in their second year.

Later this month they will travel to Gove in the Northern Territory to attend the Garma Festival.

“The opportunity to travel comes down to your attendance and your engagement,” Motlop said.

“Only the students who are attending school 90% or above each week and are up to date with their work and maintain high standards with how they carry themselves are the ones who are picked to go.

“A big thing for us in the academy is how the boys conduct themselves outside their home environment – at school or work mainly – but also in a football environment because many of these boys are playing in the SANFL system, the second tier below AFL.”

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