Asia's place in the imaging of Australian sport

Football barriers – Aboriginal under‐representation and disconnection from the ‘world game’

“…There were a number of officials present from the Adelaide Port Thistle Soccer Club, and they immediately signed up a number of these budding stars. Perkins was a first grade soccer player at the age of 15 On one interstate trip in 1960 Moriarty became aware that as an Aboriginal the soccer authorities had to gain permission from the Protector of Aborigines for him to travel with the team: This is an insult, having to seek permission from someone I've never met. Who is this person who has control over my life?…”

“…However Christian humanitarians and those with a benevolent directive encouraged Aboriginal sporting participation as a paternalistic means of civilizing Aboriginal people. 13 In these early years horse racing and cricket were the most prominent arenas of sporting outlet. There were a number of prominent Aboriginal jockeys, including the brilliant Peter St Albans, who as a 13-year-old rode Briseis to win Australia's greatest race, the Melbourne Cup, in 1876.…”

“…Mathew Hale, who established a missionary institution at Poonindie, near Port Lincoln in South Australia in 1850, believed that games and cricket in particular, could make Aborigines more industrious and moral.' 15 One of the most significant sporting moments of this period was the highly successful Aboriginal cricket team that toured England in 1868. Without question the stars of this very good team were Johnny Mullagh and Johnny Cuzens.…”

“…With greater segregation and less contact between Aborigines and Europeans at work, there were fewer opportunities and incentives for Aborigines to continue playing cricket. 17 Placed under the strict control of government Protection Boards, Aboriginal people were largely segregated away from the wider community.…”

Tumultuous Text: The Imagining of Australia Through Literature, Sport and Nationalism from Colonies to the Federation

“…33 A horse racing event was in fact the first officially organised and sanctioned sports meeting in Australian history, commissioned and hosted by the 73rd Regiment in October 1810 at Hyde Park in Sydney. 34 Just seven horses arrived with the First Fleet in 1788 but by 1810 there were 1,100. 35 The horse had become a quintessential feature not only of Australia's transportation system, but of its cultural template.…”