Australian rules football is ready to welcome an exciting new chapter in Narrabri this evening when Auskick makes a return to town for the first time since 2018.
Boys and girls turning five-years-old this year and up to 12-years-old will descend on Leitch Oval when the 10-week junior program gets underway.
Ebonnie Whan is the coordinator of the Narrabri program and cannot wait for the season to begin.
“We have 36 kids registered at the moment,” Ebonnie said on Sunday.
“We start on Thursday (tonight), and you can still sign up at any time in the season. We are not going to close the registrations.
“It will run from Thursday, April 28, to Thursday, June 30, inclusive, from 5-6pm at Number Three Oval.
“There’ll also be dinner and fruit afterwards, and when you sign up you get a really great Auskick pack, which includes a bag and socks and a footy, of course.
“We have been approved for active kids vouchers too.
“Also, if COVID stays the way it is now, we are very hopeful of getting a run at the SCG or Gold Coast at some stage during the year.”
Two excited Auskick participants, Bridie and Percy Whan, recently met a former Auskick participant who is now the star of the AFL competition, Lance ‘Buddy’ Franklin.
Franklin is a forward at the Sydney Swans, the club he has played for since 2014 after he played 182 games across nine seasons for Hawthorn Hawks from 2005-2013.
In round two of the 2022 AFL season on Friday, March 25, he kicked his 1000th AFL goal in a 30-point victory at the Sydney Cricket Ground against the Geelong Cats and became just the sixth person to achieve that milestone in VFL/AFL history.
To celebrate, 1000 Auskickers across NSW/ACT received the opportunity to meet Franklin at the SCG last week on Tuesday, April 19. Two of those were Bridie and Percy.
“It was so well organised,” Ebonnie said.
“They took the kids out onto the SCG and Buddy came out and they were all cheering for Buddy.
“It was really lovely.
“The whole Swans team came out too and we got all of their autographs.
“It was a great opportunity for our kids, country kids, to go to the SCG to see where Buddy kicked those goals and even just see Sydney after COVID.
“It was really exciting.”
While the two Narrabri Auskickers had a blast, Franklin, who will sign an autographed copy of the Buddy 1000 photo for all the youngsters who attended, described the occasion as special.
“It’s pretty special to have the kids here today. It means a lot to me and shows how Auskick is thriving in NSW and all over Australia,” he said.
“My main message to kids out there wanting to play footy is to just have fun, you can meet some new friends and enjoy your time being active.”
The AFL also announced that when Franklin kicked his milestone goal, 1000 lucky children were eligible for a free NAB AFL Auskick registration in celebration of what it described as one of the game’s greatest players, which Ebonnie said quickly boosted Narrabri’s registration numbers.
Auskickers from across NSW and ACT celebrate Lance ‘Buddy’ Franklin’s 1000th AFL goal with the superstar himself at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
