Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last weekend was huge for Aussie Rules in Queensland, and Moreton in particular. The Sherwood Australian Rules club had its annual sign-on day over the Saturday and Sunday and their Brisbane Lions family fun day, which I had the good fortune to attend, on Saturday, which included a very special guest appearance by the players from the mighty Brisbane Lions.

Chris Dennis, the president of the Sherwood AFL club know how to put on a good show, and I thank him most sincerely for the invitation and for the hard work and organisation done by that club. It was a big project to take on, but it went off without a hitch.

I did not get too close to the Lions players because there were huge line-ups of kids looking for autographs, so I thought I would play it cool. But I noticed that the captain, Tom Rockliff, and many other players were signing selflessly for hours on end. Thank you to them for doing that, particularly for the Moreton kids.

I did get to say hello to their friendly maroon-clad mascot lion, Roy, who was doing an incredible job. It was a very, very warm day, so not a great day for a mascot—

Darren Chester (Gippsland, National Party, Assistant Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

He lost 10 kilos!

Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes—he lost about 10 kilos! I will take that interjection from the member for Gippsland—a former Lions fan, I am sure, having spent some time in Queensland. Roy does not say much, but he is very popular with the kids and it was great to see a lion walking around on his two feet all day when it was so hot.

The day was bigger than Ben-Hur, with over 5,000 visitors coming from as far away as Toowoomba and the Sunshine Coast. It was great to see so many footy fans, young and old, enjoying the face painting, the gourmet food and the other activities while supporting a local club, seeing their heroes up close and having a yarn to them about the upcoming season. I know that the Lions are going to be in the final eight by the end of the year.

It was also great to see that the AFL really knows how to reach out to families. Apart from the Sherwood club my electorate has a couple of AFL clubs, including Yeronga Souths, which has been around for over a century. I am sure they are going to have a great season. I also will rope in a few that are just on the border or just over the border but which take many players from Moreton, including the Kenmore Bears, the Mount Gravatt Vultures and—right at the end of the road where I live—the Griffith-Moorooka Roosters, who also do some great stuff and, hopefully, will have a great season.

I hear that Auskick is very popular with many of the parents I catch up with. The AFL Auskick program makes learning to play AFL fun, safe and easy for boys and girls. Young players have weekly coaching sessions where they learn the skills of the quite complicated senior game, but do it in an exciting, social and safe environment. Perhaps some of the other codes could learn from what Auskick is doing in terms of reaching out to kids. The AFL Auskick program has centres that operate all over the country and it is taking the game to schools in Moreton very effectively—so watch out, some of those other codes! The Auskick program at Sherwood involves a great game with the under-sixes and their parents—even the parents end up getting on the field and having a go. Thank you again to Chris Dennis and the Sherwood AFL club, and all the best for the season. (Time expired)