Football visits the ‘Red Centre’

Australia (FICA), Football Federation Northern Territory (FFNT) and Adelaide United Football Club (AUFC), an elite playing group provided by AUFC including Marcos Flores, Eugene Galekovic and Daniel Mullen provided first class coaching for junior players in the Uluru region.

Overview for Uluru visit by AUFC and FICA by Paul Lelliott (CEO FICA)

In a joint venture between Football Federation Australia (FFA), Football In Central Australia (FICA), Football Federation Northern Territory (FFNT) and Adelaide United Football Club (AUFC), an elite playing group provided by AUFC including Marcos Flores, Eugene Galekovic and Daniel Mullen provided first class coaching for junior players in the Uluru region. FICA also capitalised on its involvement by arranging clinics in Alice Springs.

The first stop was Centralian Middle School which had a mix of about 50% non indigenous and 50% indigenous. The target age was U14-s boys and girls, with over 50 students in attendance. As a result of this activity, future relationships have been established between the school and AUFC, with Centralian Middle offering their indoor gym and facilities as a training and recovery base for future AUFC players and teams travelling to the region.

The next session was held at Ross Park (Alice Springs) and the players were generous in their praise for the pitch and the clubrooms. Up to 40 juniors braved the wet conditions and were treated to almost 2 hrs of specialised training. The media covered to occasion and football received excellent exposure in the Centralian Advocate.

The group met with Imparja executives that same evening and established a relationship which is sure to lead to increased television reporting for football in Central Australia. The pending Uluru visit was duly reported on the Imparja news update. Imparja is a founding FICA sponsor and FICA will build on this connection to promote the FFA Indigenous Football Festival to be held in Alice July 6-8.

The trip to Uluru was a welcoming experience but it also proved how much work is still required to close the gap in remote Indigenous communities.

Thanks to those on the ground who made this happen, Chris Harvey, Atesh Marharaj, Danny Fraser, Gio Morelli, Robyn Lelliott, Sarah Reed, Sue Tripodi, Marcos Flores, Eugene Galekovic, Daniel Mullen

JUST PERFECT!