THANKS to the efforts of an Australian 'local hero' and a little networking by Queensland Country Life, one of the state's most disadvantaged rugby league teams is now equipped to let their own Johnathan Thurston or Greg Inglis take the field.
A decade after they last played regularly, the Mornington Island Raiders will be a force to be reckoned with in 2015, thanks to online giving platform GIVIT.
The 18-member team might be faced with hours of travel by boat, four wheel drive or aeroplane to get a game, but GIVIT and QCL have been able to remove at least one obstacle – the lack of boots to play in.
When QCL passed on a media release from the Mornington Shire Council to GIVIT, reporting just one pair of footy boots between the newly reformed squad, it struck an immediate chord with its CEO Juliette Wright, the Queensland dynamo named Australia’s Local Hero at the 2015 Australian of the Year awards.
GIVIT activated its network and within six hours was able to announce that more than double the amount of requested boots had been donated and posted to the island.
The group’s donor database and social media reached thousands of Australians, from Victoria to Western Australia.
Lending a hand
Twelve of the pairs of boots were donated by Shoes for Planet Earth, a charity working with local and international communities to provide recycled running shoes to those in need around the world.
Shoes for Planet Earth co-founder Viv Kartsounis said they were inspired by the story.
“We read about Mornington Shire Council’s quest on GIVIT’s Facebook and immediately knew we wanted to help,” Viv said.
“Hearing this story, knowing the need and the fact that the rest of Australia has a simple luxury these guys don’t – we wanted to change that.”
Players on Mornington Island have been overwhelmed with the response.
"We’ve really struggled to get support so we are so stoked with the arrival of these boots."
According to Dale Amini, the group is humbled to think there are people on the mainland that want to help the team do what they do best.
“We’ve really struggled to get support so we are so stoked with the arrival of these boots,” John Amini added.
Mornington Shire Council’s sports and recreation coordinator Sean Durant described the backing as game-changing.
“A large percentage of the island population experiences disadvantage on a number of levels so the support provided through GIVIT is essential.
“As a remote community with very few resources, it is game-changing to tap into a national network of givers for free.”
He said the items secured – balls, training shirts and exercise equipment are also being donated – will go a long way towards helping the team, not only in training but also knowing people across Australia are wanting to help.
“These guys are incredibly talented. I just want to give them the opportunity to play some matches.”
Ready for Raides revival
In the early 1990s the Raiders played in indigenous tournaments around the gulf, and were highly respected for their style of play.
It has been these ex-Raiders players that have inspired the revival.
It’s a revival that can offer role models and pathways, but many restrictions need to be overcome.
Sean said he could see the men that have been to training have “that spring in their step and their chest out. The kids follow them around at training as if they are superstars.”
Thanks to the positive support the men are receiving, the Gunana Yarakaras junior rugby league academy has kicked off, with some 30 boys and 30 girls involved.
"The dream is big, but we need to start small and lay a good platform."
The obstacles are still huge – Doomadgee is the closest competitor, an hour by boat plus an hour-and-a-half by dirt road away, relying on being met at the coast and ferried back and forth by people from Doomadgee.
There’s no passenger barge service so boat trips to the coast have to rely on the marine rescue vehicle.
Return flights to Mount Isa and Cairns, each 440 kilometres away, cost over $600 for each of the 18 players and support staff
According to Sean, they have been close to entering the mid-west competition in the past but travel costs have stopped momentum.
“In the short term, we are trying to get accreditations and insurance covered with the QRL and build a strong foundation.
“We are trying to target two or three indigenous carnivals a year and attract some teams to play one-off games on the island so we have a constant focus.
“The dream is big, but we need to start small and lay a good platform.”
Sally Cripps
Journalist
Journalist
