Football’s connection to the Indigenous community in Far North Queensland continues to grow stronger after five John Moriarty Football (JMF) coaches took part in a recent Skill Training Certificate course in Cairns.

Reggie Davani, Football Queensland’s (FQ) Technical Development Manager for the FNQ zone, delivered the day-long event for a 10-person group comprising JMF Kuranda members and a further five coaches from the local area.

With FQ investing in coach development and committed to creating participation opportunities for Indigenous Australians, Davani described the course as a positive step forward for the region.

“Last year we began the process of building a relationship in the region with JMF in terms of coach development, community relations and player identification within the foundation and the Indigenous space,” Davani said.

“This is something I wanted to make a connection with, it’s something I’d like to develop and progress, in terms of Indigenous players, Indigenous football, and getting the Indigenous community to fall in love with the game.

Great day developing @FootballJMF and @FNQFootball1 coaches running a skill training course and coaching workshop on coaching methodology CHANGEIT here in Cairns @FootballQLD #grassroots #coachdevelopment #fnq pic.twitter.com/k0iSK6UoIH

— Reginald Davani (@ReggieDavani10) October 1, 2020

“It’s about continuing to build that relationship between the zone and JMF in the area – it’s important that we all try to work together.

“At the end of the day we’re all trying to achieve the same common goal, which is to promote the game and to promote the game in the Indigenous community as well.”

After completing the course, Davani teamed up with coach developer Martin Docherty to deliver an additional workshop based on the C.H.A.N.G.E.I.T. method, which encourages coaches to be creative in developing skill-based challenges for young players.

The former Papua New Guinea international footballer also said he had identified several JMF coaches who were ready to progress to a C Youth Licence course, the next step on the coaching pathway.

“That gives us and JMF the opportunity to continue to identify coaches within the region and the zone and potentially work with JMF for them to go into schools and local Indigenous communities,” he said.

“For me, and for the zone and Football Queensland, that’s a massive tick for promoting the game in the Indigenous space.”