Sydney FC’s goalkeeper Jada Whyman has praised the work of the A-Leagues and the John Moriarty Foundation (JMF) in support of Indigenous Football Week (IFW).
Whyman who is a JMF Scholarship Mentor, and former IFW21 ambassador, as well as a Wiradjuri and Yorta Yorta Woman, has established a successful career with the Sky Blues.
“The work they [JMF] do is pretty amazing,” she said.
“It’s massive what the JMF do in communities.
“It’s very much a holistic kind of view that JMF do, which is what I really appreciate about how they approach football.
“I think it is important as it gives a platform to Indigenous footballers and then also gives a bit of a pathway for young Indigenous footballers to look up to and celebrate the culture of Indigenous football in Australia,” said Whyman.
Taking place over October 30th till November 5th, IFW is embarking on its’ third partnership with the Isuzu UTE A-League Men and Liberty A-League Women competitions.
Each club hosting a home game will have the opportunity to hold game day activities including a Welcome to Country, Indigenous performances and highlights of Indigenous player interviews.
To kick off the celebration of IFW, Sydney FC A-League Men’s will travel to Melbourne’s AAMI Park to take on Melbourne City FC on Friday the 3rd of November at 7:45pm.
“I think it is a fantastic week and a fantastic program they do each year, so I really enjoy it,” Whyman added.
As Australia’s longest running and most successful Indigenous Football initiative for the ages of two to 18, JMF focuses on transformational skills program utilising football to promote resilient and healthier outcomes for Indigenous communities.
As a JMF Scholarship Mentor, Whyman added:
“It [JMF] hugely educates the kids. They have programmes within their schools as well to be able to help scholarship kids and then hopefully once they are a bit older, they can make their way up to Sydney for a professional pathway.”
“There are not a lot of avenues for Indigenous kids and obviously football is a very expensive sport at grass root level, so being able to provide that financial support as well for them is hugely important.”
For more information on IFW23 visit www.indigenousfootballweek.org.au
For more information on JMF visit www.jmf.org.au
