Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd like to take this opportunity to congratulate one of the fantastic young students in my electorate of Forde. Bashir Nur, who has recently been selected to join Logan Lightning FC, is an example of a great local sporting champion. The Forde electorate is indeed fortunate to have so many up-and-coming young sporting champions. Mr Nur, who has now completed his senior year at Marsden State High, grew up playing football in Africa. He didn't have the sporting programs and facilities, such as the government's Local Sporting Champions grants that we are so lucky to have here in Australia. Nevertheless, he found a way to play.

After migrating to Australia in 2010, his dreams of playing this sport began to develop and grow. Bashir was selected for the Super Youth League Under 15 team and then, in 2017, after some setbacks, he obtained a scholarship to play in the under-18 BPL team. This year, he has accomplished some of his biggest achievements. He represented the metropolitan east region at the state championships, where he was selected for the Queensland Schoolboys side, and travelled to Sydney to compete in the tri-state tournament against Victoria. The tournament in Sydney saw him named a shadow player for the Australian boys team, the first Marsden State High representative to do so. I'd like to congratulate Bashir on his success and wish him all the best for the future.