Hewago Paul Oea (nicknamed 'Ace') used to stand at the back of team huddles because he couldn't understand English. Now he's inspiring a new generation in his homeland to pick up an Aussie rules ball.
AFL player Hewago Paul Oea is keen to inspire children from Papua New Guinea to follow in his footsteps.It was a moment to savour for the Oea family in Papua New Guinea, watching Hewago Paul Oea make his AFL debut for the Gold Coast Suns.
After experiencing the highs of AFL football, Oea was quickly introduced to the unexpected pitfalls — the following week, he dislocated the little finger of his left hand while joining teammates in on-field celebrations after their win against Richmond. However, the finger was quickly put back into place and played in the Suns' next game, against Essendon.
"The opportunity doesn't come twice so I took it with both hands. I put my head down and got to work. Now the hard work has paid off. I am so grateful. Words cannot describe," he said. They say it takes a village to raise a child, and for Oea, it took two families across borders - one home and one away - to help his career develop.
When he first moved in with the Searl family, he would not sleep in a bed because tradition encourages only the primary breadwinner in the family to do so.The trailblazer played at the representative level in Queensland before joining the AFL's domestic programs. That's when he was coached by 2005 Sydney Swans premiership winner and development coach Jared Crouch in a representative development team called The Allies.
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