Perth the Benchmark for Indigenous Talent

The Perth Football Club have set the benchmark when it comes to the amount of indigenous talent representing the Demons.

With the Rio Tinto NAIDOC round occuring last week, Perth once again had an astounding amount of aboriginal footballers playing in our senior, development and colts sides.

There are currently 29 indigenous footballers across the senior and colts with many more coming through our development squads.

Perth are also very fortunate to have ex-AFL legends in Chance Bateman (League assistant coach) and Troy Cook (Director of Football) in positions of leadership to assist the development of these young men.

The Demons are also the only WAFL club to have employed a full time Aboriginal Engagement Officer in Callum Walley. With the numbers of aboriginal players at the club expected to grow over the next few years, you can understand the club's decision to have someone in a full time role to support these boys.

The opportunities over NAIDOC celebrations for the boys to represent the Perth Football Club as one team have been phenomenal.

Perth had an all indigenous team go into Banksia Hill Detention Centre as part of the football program coordinated by Walley and play a game against the Banksia Roos. It was a fantastic game played in the right manner and both teams took a lot from it.

The boys also played a game at Kent Street Senior High School where senior player Lennon Marlin works as an AEIO. 

With both the Maali and Gwaba Carnivals coming up later in the year, the Demons will be looking to come together and compete to again showcase the strong indigenous talent we currently have playing football at the club.