Coaches and staff from the Club’s Next Generation Academy, powered by Tyrepower, were in the Kimberley last week conducting youth football clinics and coach education workshops.
NGA Coach Roger Hayden provides the final instalment from the four-day Kimberley adventure with a final visit to Warmun.
The WAFC and GARNDUWA have provided support for the trip, supplying vehicles, staff and local communications to ensure our time in the Kimberley was a success.
Read the report from days one and two!
After well received visits in Broome, Fitzroy Crossing and Halls Creek, we packed up and prepared for the final leg of the trip, visiting Warmun, the home community of Leno Thomas.
Upon arriving in Warmun, the local children swarmed the under-cover area next to the recreation centre to get into some fun football activities and meet everyone in our travel party.
There was plenty of Freo jumpers and purple on display, showing the community’s support for the club, while every person in attendance wanted to let us know that they knew Leno!
The children participated in a number of skill development rotations, utilising the under-cover facilities in the hot conditions to show off their skills and energy to participate, not wanting the clinic to finish up after nearly two hours!
Local police officers assisted in the clinic, reinforcing the importance of their involvement in junior and youth football and the positive outcomes that can come from this type of interaction.
At the end of the clinic, community elders encouraged us to visit the local art gallery, which was an experience that blew us all away.
The gallery and the art that was housed there was of amazing quality, showing the strong link to culture and the importance of expression in the community of Warmun.
It was then onwards to Kununurra, where we again had great representation of local youth and junior footballers. The energy and level of skill didn’t disappoint, which were common themes throughout each town we visited.
The local WA police again supported our coach education and accreditation process, with a passion and drive to have a greater impact in the community. We have certainly gained greater understanding of the environment the local officers work in and they have provided great feedback to how we can build this process of police and youth engagement in the Kimberley through football programs and competitions.
The final night concluded with visits to senior teams in the area, conducting a training session with the Kununurra Demons and finishing off with a social meeting with the Ord River Magpies.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the WAFC, Garnduwa and WA Police for their amazing support of this trip, ensuring it was a success from day one.
Our travelling party made the whole process a great success, in particular our tour guides, drivers and organisers; Garnduwa CEO, Mick Albert and WAFC Regional Development Specialist, Eamon Rice. Without these guys we couldn’t have achieved the out-reach that we did.
We’ve already started planning our next visit to the Kimberley, with so many other opportunities to build the club’s support in the region, we can’t wait to get up there again.
