What a fantastic launch to our 160th season last week against Collingwood! The passion from our players and our supporters sets the standard for the rest of this season.
Unfortunately, there were incidents across the AFL last week that were unacceptable. Liam Ryan was last week’s victim of racist online comments but this is faced often by many of our Indigenous colleagues.
Our club’s history proudly includes Albert ‘Pompey’ Austin who was the first Indigenous player to play in an organised Australian Rules game in the 1870s. And few names are as famous as our own Graham ‘Polly’ Farmer, an AFL Legend and the VFL’s first ever Indigenous coach.
Our actions today are as important as ever. We are working on our Reconciliation Action Plan that outlines our responsibilities. Our Djilang and Next Generation programs provide pathways for some of our local Indigenous community.
We were proud when our players and supporters greeted Sydney Swans star, Adam Goodes, with great respect at a time when the campaign of booing him was bringing shame to our game.
The Geelong Cats vehemently oppose the idea that someone is judged on their race, gender or religion. Our club is built on respecting people from diverse backgrounds and experiences.
We saw the disgraceful sexist trolling of Carlton AFLW player, Tayla Harris. We saw brawls in the crowds at other grounds. And so let’s be very clear. While we want GMHBA Stadium to be a hard venue for opposition teams to play, we also want it to be welcoming and safe for all supporters no matter what colour is their scarf or beanie.
Let’s remember that opposition supporters are also our children’s teachers. They are the nurses who look after us when we are sick. They are the strangers who open doors for us. They are often our friends, partners and family!
We play a passionate and emotional game but we take the behaviour of our members, supporters and those attending our stadium very seriously. Our supporters want us to come down very hard on anyone who behaves poorly.
Let’s show the football world what we stand for! When we sing of “The Greatest Team of All“ we are talking about all of us – players and supporters!
Go Cats!
Colin Carter, Brian Cook, Chris Scott and Joel Selwood
