Hewago Paul Oea (nicknamed 'Ace'), who is the first AFL player to grow up in Papua New Guinea, is inspiring a new generation to pick up an Aussie rules ball in rugby league territory. Read more: AFL sport aussierules GoldCoastSUNS
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. Oea isn't the first PNG-born player to play the game at the top level. Former AFL defender Mal Michael - who played for Collingwood, Brisbane Lions and Essendon - was also born in PNG and moved to Australia aged three.
For Oea, two years of COVID-19 restrictions meant limited football and few visits home to PNG. But he embraced the challenge, sharing cultural connections with teammates. Oea boards with the Searl family in Queensland, who helped improve his English from a second-grade level to its current fluency.English was Oea's third language when he first moved to Australia, and he hadn’t done a lot of formal schooling.
Crouch compares Oea's achievement to that of his former Sydney Swans teammate Tadhg Kennelly, one of the first Irishmen to play in the AFL and who helped pave the way for others from his homeland to transfer skills from Gaelic football.
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