The Northern Territory news Wed 14 Mar 2012
NT news
The Northern Territory news; NewspaperNT
2012-03-14
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English
Community newspapers -- Northern Territory -- Darwin; Australian newspapers -- Northern Territory -- Darwin
Nationwide News Pty. Limited
Darwin
application/pdf
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Nationwide News Pty. Limited
https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2019C00042
https://hdl.handle.net/10070/238758
https://hdl.handle.net/10070/630608
54 NT NEWS. Wednesday, March 14, 2012. www.ntnews.com.au P U B : N T N E W S D A T E : 1 4 -M A R -2 0 1 2 P A G E : 5 4 C O L O R : C M Y K 1080127v4 SPORT l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l ntnews.com.au FOOTROT FLATS Tiwis hungry for glory By GREY MORRIS SHANE Tipuamantamirri has some bad news for NTFL Grand Final opponent Nightcliff. The Tiwi Bombers skipper said his players were starving for success after five seasons without any silverware. Everyone is hungry, we want this flag badly and well play to our very best to make sure it happens, he said. Ive never seen the boys this focused. Its a big game for the players and the people of the Tiwi Islands, probably the biggest weve ever played. Tipuamantamirri said the atmosphere on Bathurst and Melville Islands was electrifying during the weeks rest after the second semifinal win over Nightcliff. Theres a lot of excitement there and its important we make our people proud, he added. That also means selection will be pretty hard. I cant see too many changes, but Ill leave that up to the selectors while we all concentrate on the job in front of us. The suspension of key defender Billy Barden means big ruckman Craig Malone could come back into the side in the only change. Tipuamantamirri said the key for success among the players was to persist with their unique style of footy. That means running with the football, as well as hard, straight ahead defence, pace through the middle of the ground and quick movement of the ball to create one-onone contests. But he is wary of a Nightcliff side that bounced back from a 16-goal defeat to easily account for the highly rated Wanderers in the preliminary final. Nightcliff played really well against Wanderers where they attacked hard, defended ferociously and generally played as a team, which is exactly what we need to do, Tipuamantamirri said. Tiwi fans began arriving in Darwin yesterday for Saturdays grand final as anticipation of a breakthrough flag continues to build. Everyone is already a bit nervous, Tipuamantamirri said. The players, our families and the fans on the islands and here in Darwin where a lot of them are. Ill be telling the players to stay focused and to draw on the crowds energy to play even better footy to get us over the line first. Theyve got to go and play their own brand of footy, have fun and hopefully enjoy a great win. Green feels for Jurrah MELBOURNE veteran Brad Green says forward Liam Jurrahs quiet nature will make it hard for him to cope with the publicity surrounding his legal dramas. Jurrah returned to the AFL club yesterday for the first time since being charged in Alice Springs over an alleged machete attack last week. The 23-year-old, who is also working his way back from a wrist injury, had an individual fitness session in the clubs gym but did not train with teammates. He was to meet with the Demons administration and coaching staff to work out how best to continue his career as he deals with his fitness issues, and upcoming court case. Jurrah is to reappear in court on May 17 on charges of unlawfully causing serious harm and being armed with an offensive weapon at night. The Demons were still to determine whether he would also be sanctioned by the club. Green said Jurrah was in good spirits yesterday but would be finding the scrutiny hard. Hell be doing it tough with the publicity, no doubt, Green said. I know Liam as a guy and the type of person that he is, hed be doing it tough. He likes to do his talking with the football. When he gets out on that MCG and shows everybody what hes capable of, hes a fantastic player. Green said the presence of fellow indigenous players Aaron Davey, Jamie Bennell and Neville Jetta at the club would help Jurrah. Norths Majak Daw, Giant Israel Folau, West Coasts Nic Naitanui, Gold Coast Suns Karmichael Hunt and Joel Wilkinson, Richmonds Bachar Houli, Ports David Rodan and Collingwoods Harry OBrien are among the AFLs multicultural ambassadors, announced yesterday Picture: MICHAEL KLEIN Meet the faces of a multicultural game FOOTBALL BACHAR Houli had to sneak out of home to play. David Rodan stumbled on the sport while looking for a rugby field. Nic Naitanui picked it up from talented neighbours. The paths to the AFL of the 10 players appointed as multicultural ambassadors are as varied as their backgrounds. But one thing they, and AFL boss Andrew Demetriou, have in common is a belief that the code is a way to help immigrant Australians feel included. Sudanese-born North Melbourne rookie Majak Daw and Gold Coasts Nigerianborn youngster Joel Wilkinson, both subjected to racial vilification last year, are also involved. St Kildas Leigh Montagna and Ahmed Saad, Collingwoods Harry OBrien, and ex-rugby league converts Israel Folau (Greater Western Sydney) and Karmichael Hunt (Gold Coast) both of whom have Pacific islander heritage are the other ambassadors. The passion was clearly not contrived among the eight ambassadors who spoke yesterday, including Daw, who said football was a haven for new arrivals to Australia. As soon as I got to a footy club, my family was involved, my brothers and sisters, Daw said. Footys a great vehicle for multicultural people to get involved. Richmonds Houli, whose family are Lebanese Muslims, will use his status to push sport in Islamic schools. Growing up we never had that, Houli said. We never had any form of inter-school sports, we were stuck with our studies. Even convincing his own parents football was worthwhile took persistence. Early on I struggled, sneaking out every game in my first year was quite tough, Houli said. But within two years they became my biggest supporters. Daw focuses on positives NORTH Melbourne rookie Majak Daw is viewing his club-imposed suspension as character-building. The Sudanese-born big man was suspended indefinitely five weeks ago for lying to coach Brad Scott about having a night out while in rehabilitation for injury. The Kangaroos said yesterday there was still no end date specified for Daws ban. But the 21-year-old said he was trying to look on the bright side. We all go through adversity. Its just how you respond to what you face, Daw said. I see this as an opportunity to come back stronger than ever. The 195cm player is in his third year at the Roos, but is yet to play a senior game.