AFL CELEBRATES HEALTHY CHINESE CONTRIBUTION

The digital hub highlights individual stories of Chinese Australians in Australian Football, from Ballarat’s goldfields to present-day players.

The book features a collection of biographies that includes pioneers such as Koochew, Ming and James Lepp and bush footy legends Billy Wong and Clarence Lepp from country clubs across regional Victoria.

The best of West Australian and Top End players are featured through tales of Fong, Keifer Yu, Neale Fong, John Tye and Joe Sarib, who are all famous footballers figures with Chinese heritage.

The AFL has announced the creation of two AFL School Villages, focused on growing and developing the game and improving physical development in culturally diverse communities in NSW.

The announcement was made in Sydney last Friday night at the launch of a commemorative book, Celestial Footy, which tells the story of Chinese heritage in Australian Rules.

The AFL will invest $560,000 to establish pilot school village models across Hurstville and Paramatta to support accessibility and awareness of Australian Football in those communities.

Both programs will be in high CALD (culturally and linguistically diverse) communities, with Hurstville having a high population of Chinese Australian residents.

As part of the Hurstville village model, there will be a threeyear commitment to the creation of a Future Stars Program that will identify up-and-coming players, particularly those of Chinese heritage, to participate in specialised coaching sessions with AFL and Sydney Swans development coaches.

The pilot program will see five primary schools identified to participate within each community, with the AFL recruiting and providing a qualified physical education teacher to support student physical literacy and professionally develop teachers.

The schools selected for the program will also have a classroom day at Swans HQ and integration opportunities with the Sydney Swans Academy.

As the AFL seeks to expand its reach into all communities around Australia, the new book released last Friday night celebrates the singular contribution of Chinese Australians in footy.

Written by Patrick Skene, Celestial Footy tells the story of Chinese heritage in Australian Rules and was commissioned following a Commonwealth Government grant from the National Foundation for Australia-China Relations.

The funding was received to publish a commemorative book and create a digital hub celebrating the history and contribution of Chinese heritage to the game.

Celebrating the pioneers, such as Wally Koochew and Les Kew Ming, to the modern-day champions Les Fong, Lin Jong and Darcy Vescio, Celestial Footy draws on interviews and archival research to shine a spotlight on the broad range of characters who have excelled in Australian football and passed on their love of the game through the generations.

Vescio, a star for Carlton in the AFLW, designed both the cover of Celestial Footy as well as the six wallpapers used for the digital hub.

AFLW player Sophie Li and broadcaster Nat Edwards highlight female involvement in the game, along with stories celebrating players from the modern era including Trevor O’Hoy and Vescio.

“When I set out to write Celestial Footy I had no idea of the sheer number of Chinese-Australians that have played the game in the past 140 years,” Skene said.

“On my journey, I uncovered an extraordinary tradition, a hidden chapter of Australian history filled with characters, and it is an honour to put a spotlight on their stories.

“They are stories of resilience and overcoming obstacles to play the game but also stories of mateship, bravery, excellence, civic pride and having a go.”