Kate Ellis (Adelaide, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Early Childhood and Childcare) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to talk about my beloved mighty Adelaide Crows. In fact, more specifically, I would like to talk about the role that football clubs and indeed sporting clubs can play in enriching our community and bringing about great social outcomes. I do this at a time when all of the excitement of September has just passed and other than some eager watching of trade time and the comings and goings of many players—and I am not going to get sidetracked by talking about Kurt Tippett this morning—we should be mindful that there is also a whole lot more that is going on amongst some of our great clubs, and certainly the Adelaide Crows. I am here to speak specifically about a program which I am incredibly proud that our government has provided some $300,000 to support—that is, the Adelaide Football Club's Indigenous youth leadership program. This is a program that I had the great pleasure of seeing firsthand that club champions of the likes of Andrew McLeod and a range of our Indigenous players have stuck their hands up and said that they want to work with young people, particularly young people from the APY Lands, and work to ensure that people are encouraged to stay in school and to get their year 12 certificate. I think it is so positive that football clubs and the Crows have decided that they want to step up and play this role. They do not have to. There are some clubs who will concentrate on September and on their endeavour to win a flag, and little more. I am really proud that the club I support recognises that they can play a positive role beyond that.

The program caters for chosen students in years 10 to 12 and students who have displayed motivation, enthusiasm and a desire to be further educated and trained in leadership in their community. It is fantastic that this program will act to ensure that these students return as role models and pass on many of the leadership lessons that they have learnt. I would also like to acknowledge that it is not just the Adelaide Crows and the federal government alone that are funding this program. I commend Beach Energy for stepping up and for investing in this program as well. I would also point out that this links with a range of existing programs such as the South Australian National Football League's Indigenous Traineeship Program, the South Australian Aboriginal Sports Carnival, the Rio Tinto Cup, the APY Lands Junior Sports League and parental and community engagement programs in the APY Lands. This shows that the sporting community is stepping up and using the power of sport to transform lives. It shows that our Indigenous players and champions are giving back to the community. I am incredibly proud of this program. I am proud of the government support; mostly I am proud of the effort and commitment of the Adelaide Crows to this cause.