There is an old saying that sport and politics should never mix … but that’s not quite true With football on the cusp of returning, Yokayi Footy has done an amazing job engaging the audience with no football being played. This week we shake off the COVID-19 blues and talk with Nicky Winmar about his…













ABOUT ME

About My Work
In 2005 my PhD was published with Allen & Unwin as Brotherboys: the story of Jim and Phillip Krakouer. In 2009 the book was adapted into a play and had a national tour commencing in 2011. In August of 2011 Legends: the AFL Indigenous team of the Century was published and launched at the MCG by Michael Long and Professor Mick Dodson. I have led major Australian Research Council grants most notably an ARC linkage grant that reviewed the efficacy of the AFL’s education programs relating to its Vilification Laws Rule 35. This was also published by Taylor and Francis as The Biggest Game in Town. In 2017 he co-published a book with David Whish-Wilson Derby: WA footy fans on the game’s greatest rivalry with Fremantle Press.
I have worked at the following institutions: Murdoch University (1996-2004), Kurongkurl Katitjin (2004-2006), University of Melbourne (2007-2009), Curtin University CAS 2009 to 2018. In 2017-2018 I was a member in the set up of the Indigenous Players Alliance. I am currently a Senior Policy Advisor at the AFL.
``Once we don the colours and the totem of our team, we go deeper into the age-old notion of what being in a tribe must have been like. We define who we are by what we are not.``
PUBLICATIONS
Books I’ve Written
“Sean Gorman is fully alive to both the game of Australian football and the nuances of the history that surrounds it and he writes about them with unalloyed passion. This salute to the great Indigenous players of the 20th century is not only to be valued for its rare insights but also enjoyed as good, gutsy footy writing”
Martin Flanagan, columnist for The Age
ARTICLES
View My Articles
One of the game’s all-time greats, Peter Matera, discusses his fascinating journey into the AFL THE NAME Matera in Australian football is synonymous with blue-chip football. WATCH ‘EM NOW More from the Deadliest Files ON DEMAND right here In Western Australia, Peter Matera holds a special place in the hearts of West Coast Eagles supporters but, in…
As Reconciliation Week continues, this must-read piece gives a fascinating insight into the power of football IT’S NATIONAL Reconciliation Week. The week would have seen Sir Doug Nicholls Round and the unveiling of each teams specially designed guernseys celebrating the immense contributions Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players have made to the game. So, we…
A forerunner to the modern mobile ruckman, the WA great reflects on the path he took to the WAFL, and why he never ventured east STEPHEN Michael was born in 1956 in Wagin, Western Australia, but was raised in Kojonup, 250 kilometres south of Perth. Growing up on the reserve at Kojunup, Michael’s memories are…
This year’s Sir Doug Nicholls Round will also recognise Australian Football Legend Syd Jackson and his contribution to the game and the community. Playing 136 games for the Carlton Football Club from 1969-76, the dual-premiership player has worked tirelessly to create opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, including supporting the Blues Foundation with…
Descending into Melbourne at 130pm on Sunday the 23rd of September I was reminded by the Qantas captain just how cold this old town can get. In my neck of the woods, East Fremantle, spring has well and truly sprung so stepping out into the acute 10 degree day was challenging. I was here to…
Parap markets are a world within a world. Like some strange little island in the middle of the shopping centre car park, it is not just a buffet of culinary choice but a life buffet. A cross-section of Darwin and the Territory, there are so many things to see, hear and smell. Gawking tourists, locals…
Marlion Pickett biography reads ‘like a Steinbeck novel cum Tarantino film due to the vividly unfolding drama on almost every page’ FOR MANY who read Marlion Pickett’s new biography the themes raised in it will possibly be some they had not considered before. Despite it being a battler/football story, it reads like a Steinbeck novel…
It’s a strange old year and even the ladder looks like it’s been drawn by Salvador Dali With the Power, Saints and Suns all in the top eight, the Tigers and Eagles are battling for form. Further, we thought with the COVID-19 crisis everything was in hand but a second spike has developed in footy’s…
With the AFL shutting down games in Victoria, Melbourne’s great football stadia will stand silent for months – but one thing is for certain: the AFL has risen to the challenge to keep the game alive. For First Nations players, the online racial trolling and stereotyping is also a challenge they too are rising…
From wide-eyed Essendon youngster to Port premiership star, Gavin Wanganeen reflects on his journey to and in the AFL AS A YOUNG child growing up in the northern suburbs of Adelaide, Gavin Wanganeen loved watching the Krakouer brothers and Gary Ablett snr on TV. WATCH ‘EM NOW More from the Deadliest Files ON DEMAND right here For…
THE FOOTY world has been thrown another curve ball with Melbourne going into another lockdown. With all Melbourne based AFL teams scrambling to get out of Victoria, the code is fighting to keep the game on our screens and Yokayi Footy is doing its best to inform, educate and entertain. It seems ironic that the…
“Keep your eyes on the sun and you will not see the shadows.”
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