I can't find the link anywhere, but there is an article on the Australian about Canteen Creek Blues who are aligned with the Blues..... here is bits of it, that I typed up - credit to Paul Toohey who wrote the article.
Quote:
THE Carlton Football Club yesterday offered solidarity to its Northern Territory indigenous football brothers from the far-flung Canteen Creek community.
Carlton coach Brett Ratten got on the phone from Melbourne to Canteen Creek, where the football team gathered to talk through issues that have left the bush team heartbroken.
Ratten offered his counsel and promised that Carlton would build a relationship with the team after The Australian reported on Wednesday the tragic situation of the Canteen Creek Blues, who wear Carlton colours and come from a small community 290km southeast of Tennant Creek.
The Blues were playing in the Barkly Australian Football League semi-final on Saturday when the umpire stopped play early in the final quarter and took a head count. The Blues had 18 players on the ground, but were supposed to have only 17 while one player sat out a 20-minute suspension. Unknown to the players, fans and the scoreboard attendants, the umpire wiped Canteen Creek's score back to zero.
There was chaos and grief at the end of the game when the Blues, who appeared to have won by 28 points and thought they were through to the grand final, learned that 45 points had been wiped from their score, costing them the game. Before Ratten went on speakerphone and talked to the whole team, Canteen Creek Blues captain Clinton Campbell, 18, had a one-on-one with the Carlton coach and quizzed him about the legalities of winding the score back to zero.
"They asked if I could go up some time and if I could bring a couple of players. They asked for (star players Brendan) Fevola and (Chris) Judd, and I said it might depend on the time of year. But I would love to fly up and overnight there and see everyone and run a clinic and give some support, because that's what footy's about".
Campbell said he took a while to start talking to the AFL coach. "I was a bit nervous -- I couldn't even talk properly,'' he said. "I can't believe I was talking to him. It was so good".
The Blues deserve some luck. Last week, when a search party was sent out to find a 73-year-old white tourist who had gone missing overnight after taking a bush walk, it was two members of the Canteen Creek Blues who found him safe and well.
Carlton coach Brett Ratten got on the phone from Melbourne to Canteen Creek, where the football team gathered to talk through issues that have left the bush team heartbroken.
Ratten offered his counsel and promised that Carlton would build a relationship with the team after The Australian reported on Wednesday the tragic situation of the Canteen Creek Blues, who wear Carlton colours and come from a small community 290km southeast of Tennant Creek.
The Blues were playing in the Barkly Australian Football League semi-final on Saturday when the umpire stopped play early in the final quarter and took a head count. The Blues had 18 players on the ground, but were supposed to have only 17 while one player sat out a 20-minute suspension. Unknown to the players, fans and the scoreboard attendants, the umpire wiped Canteen Creek's score back to zero.
There was chaos and grief at the end of the game when the Blues, who appeared to have won by 28 points and thought they were through to the grand final, learned that 45 points had been wiped from their score, costing them the game. Before Ratten went on speakerphone and talked to the whole team, Canteen Creek Blues captain Clinton Campbell, 18, had a one-on-one with the Carlton coach and quizzed him about the legalities of winding the score back to zero.
"They asked if I could go up some time and if I could bring a couple of players. They asked for (star players Brendan) Fevola and (Chris) Judd, and I said it might depend on the time of year. But I would love to fly up and overnight there and see everyone and run a clinic and give some support, because that's what footy's about".
Campbell said he took a while to start talking to the AFL coach. "I was a bit nervous -- I couldn't even talk properly,'' he said. "I can't believe I was talking to him. It was so good".
The Blues deserve some luck. Last week, when a search party was sent out to find a 73-year-old white tourist who had gone missing overnight after taking a bush walk, it was two members of the Canteen Creek Blues who found him safe and well.
