Fans Industry

AFL Players Induction Camp 2013

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105 of the AFL’s new recruits gathered at Etihad Stadium on Monday for the annual AFL Players’ Association/AFL induction camp.

Day one of the two-day camp belongs to the Players’ Association and It is a day where the players are introduced to their union and educated on the range of support services available to them throughout, and following the completion of their AFL journey.

Since their recruitment in late November and early December the draftees have been working hard at the on-field side of being an AFL footballer, but this is the first initiation to everything else that makes up the 24/7 job they have walked into.

8.45AM – Registration

The players arrive at the Victory Room of Etihad Stadium grouped with their teammates and accompanied by their player welfare manager. Such is the freshness of their faces the club polo shirt is the only indictor they are AFL footballers and not the class of 2013 from an all boys’ school.

The most interesting face in the crowd is a familiar one. Brett Goodes attended the camp the previous two years as the Western Bulldogs player welfare manager, this year he is attending as a rookie. “I had a chuckle when I found out I had to attend,” he said.

The players are presented with a show bag that includes an iPad. The iPad is provided through the AFL Players’ computer grant available to all first year players and generates the most excitement and discussion of the morning (and then on twitter in the afternoon when their senior teammates get wind.)

9.00AM – Introduction

The group are welcomed by General Manager – Player Development Brett Johnson and Player Development – Regional Manager and former Brisbane star (his words), Richard Champion.

From there the boys break up into groups of 12-15 comprised of members of two or three AFL clubs and they begin the cycle through eight education stations allocated before lunch.

9.30AM – Get on board

General Manager – Player Relations Ian Prendergast gives an overview of the Players’ Association. He informs the group that the Association is essentially a union run by the players.

The boys sign a form and commit their allegiance. In this same session Commercial Operations Manager Wes Garth provides a crash course on player licensing and the structures in place to help them protect their own brand.

Kelly Applebee (Indigenous & Multicultural Manager) explains how the Players’ Association helps to shape an inclusive industry that values diversity and how the Players’ Association supports Indigenous & Multicultural Players on their AFL journey. The players also fill out a Multicultural survey to provide the Association with information to help programming etc.

9.50AM – The art of wellbeing

The Wellbeing team including Dr Jo Mitchell and Anna Box give the players an introduction to the wellbeing services on offer through the AFL Players’ Association. The boys are educated on the importance of assessing their health and wellbeing with a holistic view and not just on their 3km time trial or on-field performance. They are prompted to connect, move, tune-in, learn and give as ways to maintain their wellbeing.

The group is urged to find something to do that helps them maintain their health and wellbeing. Examples from current AFL players are given. Western Bulldog Bob Murphy enjoys a family dinner at the local pub with like-minded folk. Saint Ben McEvoy shares ruck tips with his neighbour who plays in a local disabilities league.

Finally, the group are asked to partner-up and after looking at each other for five seconds, they must then draw a picture of their opposite without looking away from the page. The activity ties in the five ways to wellbeing.

Sydney’s Xavier Richards captures Collingwood’s Brodie Grundy very nicely, shag of hair and all.

10.10AM – Safety Sense

The group have the opportunity to try the Safety Sense driving simulator, which demonstrates the danger of driving under the influence of alcohol and operating a mobile phone. It is of great relevance given the age group at the greatest risk of road trauma is the 19-29 bracket.

Brodie Grundy looks good on canvas but not behind the wheel, he can’t get his phone out of his shorts let alone read a text message. His virtual traffic offence has the group in laughter.

10.30AM – Social and personal responsibility

Social media is a new challenge the modern day player is faced with and Channel Nine reporter Tom Steinfort schools the group on how to deal with the media and how to make social media your friend. He uses the case of Rugby League star Robbie Farrah to re-enforce the power of social media.

Steinfort tells the group social platforms such as Twitter provide the players with a golden opportunity to develop their own personal brand.

10.50AM – Introduction from AFL Players’ Association President Luke Ball

Ball welcomes the group and discusses his progression from draftee to Players’ Association President. He admits to “starting to feel pretty short” amongst the towering new group and recalls that when he was sitting in their seat 12 years ago all he cared about was training and getting a kick. However as he got older he “realised what a great job the players association did” and felt a need “to give something back to the association that does so much for us.”

He encourages the group to engage with the Players’ Association through their respective club delegates and to have an impact on the direction of their profession.

Ball uses the negotiation of the most recent CBA and specifically the introduction of the Players Retirement Annuity as a sign of how far the PA has progressed over the past 10 years. MC Champion uses the example that in the early 90s members got a tie for their registration fee, “I think I let that one go to the Salvos”, he jokes. This year the players get an ipad.

11.30 AM – Off-field career development

Player Development Regional Manager Marissa Fillipou tells the group the average AFL career is only 4.8 years (end of 2011) and former North Melbourne player Ed Lower and Port Adelaide player Toby Thurstans talk about the importance of developing a career away from football while still playing.

Lower’s career was finished after four years due to injury but he came out of the game with a university degree and a clear understanding of where he wanted to go next.

Toby Thurston’s nine-year career included a premiership but he was lost when he retired at age 29 and found himself unemployed for four months.

Thurston’s urges the players to “make hay while the sun shines” and to utilize the education and training grants offered by the PA as well as the scheduled day off and four hours professional development time allocated each week.

Lower uses former teammate and North Melbourne captain Andrew Swallow as proof players can successfully combine study and football commitments. He adds that he has been able to get a university degree in business and accounting using the AFL Players’ support services.

11.50 AM – Setbacks

Another past player in former Richmond and Western Bulldog Nathan Brown shares his experiences to educate the boys on the inevitable setbacks they will face during their careers.

Brown uses his broken leg to highlight the impact injuries can have on physical and psychological health. “AFL Football is the best job you will ever do, but it is also a hard job…The mentally hardest challenge was coming back from injury”, he said.

Brown reveals he wasn’t ready when he returned to football nine months after his injury. He still had pain in his leg but an urge to be “the big man”. The rush back to play in Round 1 of the next season against his old side cost him and resulted in him playing only 40 out of the next 110 games.

He echoes the advice he gave to Fremantle’s Michael Barlow, who suffered a similar injury, which was not to rush. “If you do a hammy and you need that fifth week, take it. Because if you continue to do hammys at a young age I reckon a list manager will say, “look this guy has got bad hammys, he hasn’t played much, I don’t know whether we can keep him,”’ he said.

“If you can take one thing from today, if you ever have a long-term injury make sure you get it right, make sure you are ready to go, because if you go out there and you are not ready  you only have yourself to blame.”

12.10 AM – Finance

Former league players and now the AFL Players’ Association financial advisors Brad Wira and Mark Porter speak to the group about managing their finances.

Wira and Porter use a series of graphics to demonstrate where their money goes.

The group are shocked to see Lachie Whitfield’s salary as a first round draft pick disappear before their eyes as tax and super drop out. Jaws hit the flow when they see almost a considerable chunk of a high end drop out of a hypothetical high-end salary.

12.30 PM – Ladder

Finally the players are introduced to the AFL Players’ Association official charity, Ladder. Ladder was established in 2007 by a group of AFL players to tackle youth homelessness and aim to empower young people aged 16-25 to break the cycle of homelessness.

The group is proud when they hear a certain portion of its match fee goes directly to funding Ladder.

They are shown a video of young man from the Ladder program who through the support of Ladder and the funding supplied by AFL players has taken his soccer talents from the streets to trial with an Argentinean club, FC Riverplate.

1 PM – Lunch

A feast fit for kings is served up and the players make light work of it. They catch up with mates from other clubs and share their experiences.

Joe Daniher stands out for his size and presence and says “I didn’t know what to expect from the day, but I am loving it.”

Childhood friends Ollie Wines and Jack Viney enjoy a chat and the VFL recruits such as Collingwood’s Sam Dwyer and Melbourne’s Matt Jones stick together.

Pint sized magpie Ben Kennedy is a ball of energy. Whenever something needs to be asked or said it’s the Number 1 draft pick Lachie Whitfield. And Port Adelaide’s Kane Mitchell’s long black hair is the source of plenty of laughter during a twitter photo competition.

2.00PM  – Panel discussion “What football means to me”

The panel features local footballer and the founder of anti-homophobia campaign Change.org Jason Ball, decorated footballer and Victorian Women’s Football League President, Debbie Lee, Auskick manager and father Paul Gleeson and North Melbourne footballer Majak Daw.

The session highlighted that as AFL Players they have to be aware of the impact of their actions on others and the importance of going to work in an inclusive environment that values diversity.

2.30 – Keynote speaker

The guest speaker for the afternoon is former Geelong captain and the only Australian to ever play in an Super Bowl, Ben Graham. Graham has the group captivated sharing his experiences playing in the NFL.

The draftees are particularly interested in the cutthroat nature of life in the NFL where one minute you are the starting punter and the next unemployed, and the wealth gap between the star players and the rookies paramount

Having been through the NFL lockout Graham also speaks with passion about how important a strong players’ group is to maintain conditions.

3.15PM – Drumming to the same beat

The day is rounded off listening to former Living End drummer Travis Demsey who talks about his life as a rock star. Demsey tells the group how lucky they are to have a union dedicated to its development and wellbeing.

Demsey says that despite his bands success and his worth to the band he felt he never had anyone who cared about him as a person. All that mattered was that he could beat the drums. He once had to do a show with a compound fracture of his ankle and after “dissing” rapper Eminem on stage during a concert he was threatened with his life.

To signify the importance of 18 clubs coming together to form a strong Players’ Association, Demsey has a player from each team on a bongo drum and has them beating them in unison. Jack Viney beats the bongos like he plays football, Bam-Bam.

It is a long day and there is a lot for the players to absorb, although they leave with a strong idea of the services and support available to help them develop and maintain their wellbeing. If they take just one thing from the day it has to be the sense of unity and belonging in the room.