The story so far of Liam Jurrah has been interesting and, like all true Demons, I'm hoping that it's only going to get better and that his career is a long and successful one for the MFC and for him as a player.

I've been reading about his on field exploits and his history with Collingwood through Rupert Betheras who visited Jurrah's community a couple of years ago and was instrumental in organising a trip to Melbourne and the Lexus Centre which ultimately led to his being invited to play with the Magpies' VFL side for a few games in early 2008.

Apparently, Jurrah lived in Melbourne with a member of one of Collingwood's supporter groups for several months and was acclimatising well when he returned home to be with a dying friend.

It seems to me that it would make sense that one of the things the club could do would be to make contact with the person Jurrah lived with to gain some insights into how we can help his smooth transition into the Melbourne environment.

I would imagine that there's going to be some expense involved as there would be for any recruit taken from interstate.

If that expense is incurred in the cause of carrying out a valuable social and cultural function as well as rewarding us with a stream of talented players and strong community support for our club, then it will be money well spent.

ABC Radio Australia - minor focus on Liam with a tiny amount of audio from him

"The challenge and opportunity of indigenous football"

Audio:

http://www.abc.net.au/ra/connectasia/stories/m1685221.asx

Transcript:

http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/connectas...12/s2451093.htm