Ewen Jones (Herbert, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The Townsville Fire are the reigning WBL champions, having defeated the valiant Bendigo Spirit on 8 March. This was the birthday present for which assistant coach Claudia Brassard had yearned since she so proudly wore the Fire uniform herself. I will come to the motion at hand, but first I want to speak about my Townsville Fire. This was a journey of incredible faith over common sense. The Townsville Fire had officially folded, handing back their licence to the WNBL in the 2010-11 season. It was then that a local businesswoman, Jayne Arlett, asked, 'Now what do our daughters do?' and a rescue mission was launched.

My mate David Kippin established a steering committee to keep the Fire in Townsville. He contacted every business in Townsville and got the basics in place to have another go. The two on-court cornerstones of the recovery were our captain, Rachel Flanagan, now Rachel McCully, and our coach, Chris Lucas. Rachel wanted to keep playing for the Fire and would do anything to bring a team together. For Chris, it was a leap of faith. He came to Townsville to head up a franchise which basically had no money and no roster. He said the obvious: 'Well, it's all up from here.'

There were some bumps along the road, but we were always competitive from day one, and now we are champions. The Townsville Fire are the first team from north of the Tropic of Capricorn to win a national championship. That is not just women's basketball; it is the first national championship of any sport and any gender for north of the Tropic of Capricorn. Our Townsville Fire playing group includes three-time National MVP and two-time Franchise MVP Suzy Batkovic, Micaela Cocks, Steph Cumming, Rosie Fadljevic, Cayla Francis, Kate Gaze, Jillian Harmon, Grand Final MVP Mia Newley, Alex Wilson, Jacqui Zelenka, and Captain Rachel McCully, who retires after 324 WNBL games. They are all national champions.

Our coaching staff of head coach Chris Lucas, assistant coaches Claudia Brassard and Mark Wrobel, and our manager, Donna Turner and Big John McCully, the equipment manager and volunteer since day dot, are all national champions. The administration of Richard Goodbody, who built on the great work of Judy Higgins and Eleni Milios, and the board, including Jayne Arlett, Glenys Schuntner, George Milford, Michelle Morton, Claudia Brassard, Cath Rule and Sue Willis, are all national champions.

This is a community club. The North Queensland Cowboys assist with the marketing and back office work. The players from the Cowboys and the Crocs are the biggest fans of these girls. It is not just because they play a fantastic brand of basketball or because they are a great team; it is because there is so little money in it for the girls that they have to love what they do. They are professional in every way, except the income. They do it because they love the sport and they want to test themselves against the best. But they have to be more than just elite sportspeople; they have to study, to work, to build a career, and they have to commit to the game they love. These girls show that they can have it all. You can be a gifted athlete, a scholar, a worker, a role model and a normal person. That is what the Townsville Fire says to every girl in Townsville: 'You can be whatever you want and you don't have to limit yourself.'

The Townsville Fire created history for Australian sport last weekend. They are the WNBL champions, and they will be that for the rest of their lives. My city and my region are just so proud of them.

That brings me to this motion. Sometimes, politics should be played in this place, but we should not limit ourselves to being politicians; we should strive to be parliamentarians instead. Politics should not be played around women's sport in a manner as facetious as this motion. That is what the member for Bendigo has done here. She knows very well that the reason the ABC is not continuing the broadcasting of the WNBL is not because of any budget cuts. She has the Hansard of her own Senator Singh where the ABC said they would not be doing week-to-week telecasts. She has spoken to the ABC herself. Rather, they would be concentrating on events.

In Townsville, we could not get the ABC to broadcast a game from Townsville until we hosted the grand final. So this motion is moot for anyone in the north. To use the WNBL as a political plaything and score cheap points is a callous shame, and the mover should know better. Let's celebrate this fantastic competition and the impact regional teams can have, and work together to get it on the TV for every Australian. Go the Fire!

Debate adjourned.

Sitting suspended from 13:30 to 16:00

See this speech in context