Ah Nee Nwe may not be a household name yet, but after starring in the Nhill Tigers under-14s' first grand final win in almost 30 years, that might not be the case for long.
Nwe's junior side in Victoria's far west broke a 28-year drought to defeat Ararat by seven points, with the teenager named best on ground.
Seven years ago, Nwe had barely heard of Australian Rules football, let alone kicked a Sherrin.
But fast forward to the last Saturday in September and he was launching long-range goals and inspiring his teammates as one of nine Karen boys in the drought-breaking side.
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he → star → side
"I'm finding AFL pretty good; it's fun with mates," he said.
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he → find → mates
The Karen are an ethnic group from Myanmar, many of whom fled conflict and persecution by crossing into Thailand.
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many → flee → Thailand
At least three boys in the grand final-winning team were born in refugee camps.
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boys → win → camps
Nwe is a first-generation Karen; his mother, Cho Lay, arrived in Nhill 16 years ago.
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mother → arrive → Nhill
It did not take him long to fall in love with footy.
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It → take → footy
"It's good — playing and learning new things, having more opportunities in life," he said.
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he → play → life
"I wasn't that good [at football], but then I kept training and practising more, and I got better."
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I → keep → more
He said he dreams of playing professionally one day.
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he → say → ?
"I would feel very proud of myself as being the first Karen possibly to make it to the AFL,"he said.
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I → feel → AFL,"he
"If I make the AFL, I bet the club will hold a celebration and the Karen [community will be] all happy … and Nhill will be very proud.
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Nhill → make → celebration
According to the 2021 census, Karen people make up around 10 per cent of the Nhill population.
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people → accord → population
Margaret and John Millington were instrumental in bringing the first Karen refugees to the town in 2010.
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Millington → bring → 2010
Mr Millington was the managing director of Luv-a-Duck, one of the largest duck meat producers in the country, which was struggling to find local workers.
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which → struggle → workers
He had never heard of the Karen people, but heard a number of refugees wanted to move to the nearby town of Horsham.
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number → hear → Horsham
Mr Millington was soon able to hire five Karen workers.
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Millington → hire → workers
"Five [workers] became six, became 10 and it just grew from there," Mr Millington said.
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Millington → become → ?
Ms Millington said the town had since embraced the Karen people, with around 35 businesses across the Wimmera now employing them.
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businesses → say → them
"They brought more than just their skills, more than just their employment,"she said.
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They → bring → employment,"she
"We saw on the weekend the success of the under 14s …
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We → see → 14s
I think half the under 14s were actually little Karen boys who were vital for the survival of the club."
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who → think → club
"I must say, I had a tear in my eye there in the last quarter … it was that exciting," he said.
"
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he → say → quarter
It's been a community effort, but to the credit of the community, I think we've seen the success through those kids playing.
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we → think → kids
"After Saturday winning the grand final, people will realise the importance of having them and what a gift they are to our community in so many ways."
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they → win → ways
Kicking goals
Nhill Football Netball Club's Tracey Bell has been crucial in bringing the Karen families to the club.
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Bell → kick → club
She said her own children might have had to move clubs if the Karen community had not helped fill the junior playing ranks.
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community → say → ranks
"It gave those kids an opportunity to be involved in our club and community, when they might have had other challenges — like their parents not speaking English"she said.
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parents → give → challenges
Ms Bell said building trust with the Karen families took time and consistency early on.
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building → say → time
"I had to work with them, bring them to trainings, communicate with their families through the Karen liaisons at school," she said.
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she → have → school
She said she relied on her own children, and on Karen boys with stronger English, to help translate for others in the group.
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she → say → group
"We're really proud that our club and the kids, the coaches and our community have really embraced them," she said.
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she → embrace → them
"Seeing all the kids turn up, they come to footy training, they just want to be involved.
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they → see → training
"There's no way we would have been able to play or field a 14s team, let alone take out a grand final on Saturday without them.
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we → be → them
"Looking at the extended community that attended the grand final, it was unprecedented for an under-14s game …
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it → look → game
I think it speaks volumes about how much the community supports all of our kids."
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community → think → kids
The Aporia
