Liam Jungarrayi Jurrah (born 22 September 1988) is a former professional
Australian rules footballer who played with the
Melbourne Football Club in the
Australian Football League (AFL).
Jurrah is also known as "Jungarrayi", an initiated member of the
Warlpiri people
The Warlpiri, sometimes referred to as Yapa, are a group of Aboriginal Australians defined by their Warlpiri language, although not all still speak it. There are 5,000–6,000 Warlpiri, living mostly in a few towns and settlements scattered thr ...
who are based in
Yuendumu, a small and remote
Indigenous Australian
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
community 300 km north-west of
Alice Springs in the
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...
.
He is the first indigenous person from a remote community in Central Australia to have played senior football in the AFL.
Early life
Jurrah was born in
Yuendumu to mother Corrina and father Leo Japaljarri Jurrah (a legend in Yuendumu football). Amongst many others, as per Warlpiri tradition, his Grandmother Cecily was also instrumental in his upbringing. During his childhood Jurrah grew up speaking four different indigenous Australian languages as well as learning English and had never swum in the ocean.
Jurrah began playing Australian rules football from a very young age, playing most of his football at the local red dirt Yuendumu oval and at Football carnivals throughout the Central Australian desert (Sports Weekends) against other remote communities such as Papunya,
Lajamanu
Lajamanu, formerly known as Hooker Creek Native Settlement or just Hooker Creek, is a small town of the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located around from Katherine and approximately from Darwin. At the 2016 Australian census, Lajama ...
(home of his cousin
Liam Patrick) and Hermannsburg. In his mid-teens he began following his father 600 kilometres each week to play for Yuendumu in the Alice Springs
Central Australian Football League
The Central Australian Football League (CAFL) is an Australian rules football competition operating out of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, Australia. Established in 1947, the CAFL is the oldest, most popular and important football leag ...
. Jurrah was involved in the 2005 Under 17, 2005,07,08 A Grade premiership seasons with the Yuendumu Magpies. Also during his mid-teens Jurrah began acting as a volunteer with the Mt Theo Program under its Jaru Pirrjirdi youth development program, which saw him helping to run youth activities such as sport, bush trips and discos for Yuendumu youth. His leadership and strength saw him rapidly progress through this program to begin acting as a youth mentor helping other Warlpiri young men in Yuendumu.
Jurrah was first brought to Melbourne in 2007 as a guest of a
Collingwood coterie group called the Industrial Magpies when he watched his first match at the famous
Melbourne Cricket Ground. He returned to Melbourne in 2008 where he was played by Collingwood in the
Victorian Football League
The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...
for four games and showed great athleticism and talent. Later that year he represented Victoria (VFL) against South Australia (SANFL). His stay in Melbourne was cut short by his need to return to Yuendumu for family responsibilities to support a dying friend.
In September 2008 he won the Everingham Medal as the best player in the inaugural combined competition CAFL Grand Final, with his four first-quarter goals helping to set up Yuendumu's premiership victory. This historic premiership was in the new combined competition of the 'town' and 'country' sides who had previously played separately in Alice Springs. It also marked the culmination of a great era in Yuendumu football having won Senior 'Ngurratjuta Country Cup' premierships in 2003-04-05 and 2007 before the combined comp CAFL premiership in 2008. Following the CAFL season Jurrah also played for
Nightcliff
Nightcliff is a northern suburb of the city of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.
History
Although the origin of the name Nightcliff has always been surrounded by conjecture and controversy, the naming can be tracked back to 8 September ...
in the
Northern Territory Football League
The Northern Territory Football League (NTFL) is an Australian rules football semi-professional league operating in Darwin in the Northern Territory.
The league is one of few (and the highest level) Australian Rules competitions played during ...
[Aloia, Andrew (16 December 2008]
Jurrah set for life-changing AFL draft day
/ref> where he kicked five goals in his last game and AFL talent scouts first identified him – Aaron Davey also noticed him at this time and spoke to Melbourne recruiting staff. Jurrah returned to Melbourne in December, where he was pursued by numerous AFL clubs including the North Melbourne Football Club where he trained
Jurrah was later nominated for the AFL Pre-Season Draft by former Collingwood player Rupert Betheras
Rupert James Betheras (born 23 November 1975) is a former Australian rules footballer and a contemporary artist, whose practice has largely been painting-based and also involved installation and sculpture. As a painter Betheras cut his teeth ...
, and was given special dispensation to nominate, despite not nominating for the previous National Draft.[Flanagan, Martin (3 February 2009]
Marlbourne's Warlpiri Warrior
; Realfooty.com.au
AFL career
Jurrah was recruited by Melbourne from the Yuendumu Magpies (CAFL) with the first selection in the 2009 preseason draft.
Jurrah spent his first year in Melbourne living with friends and then with his partner, as well as fellow Melbourne player Austin Wonaeamirri
Austin Wonaeamirri (born 2 October 1988) is a professional Australian rules football player of indigenous ( Tiwi) origin. He previously played for the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).
Early life
Wonaeamirri ...
.
Prior to the 2009 AFL season
The 2009 AFL season was the 113th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season featured sixte ...
, Jurrah was named to play for the Indigenous All-Stars representative side in a pre-season match against Adelaide
Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
in Darwin.
His senior indigenous teammates at Melbourne, Aaron Davey
Aaron Davey (born 10 June 1983) is a professional Australian rules football player of Indigenous Australian heritage. He played for the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL) until he retired from the club at the ...
, Matthew Whelan (both from Darwin) and Austin Wonaeamirri
Austin Wonaeamirri (born 2 October 1988) is a professional Australian rules football player of indigenous ( Tiwi) origin. He previously played for the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).
Early life
Wonaeamirri ...
(from the Tiwi Islands
The Tiwi Islands ( tiw, Ratuati Irara meaning "two islands") are part of the Northern Territory, Australia, to the north of Darwin adjoining the Timor Sea. They comprise Melville Island, Bathurst Island, and nine smaller uninhabited islands, w ...
), all played major roles in assisting Jurrah to adapt to life in Melbourne.
In round 12 of the 2009 AFL season
The 2009 AFL season was the 113th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season featured sixte ...
Jurrah made his AFL debut against Essendon Essendon may refer to:
Australia
*Electoral district of Essendon
*Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington
* Essendon, Victoria
**Essendon railway station
**Essendon Airport
* Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League
United Ki ...
at Etihad Stadium
The City of Manchester Stadium in Manchester, England, also known as the Etihad Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is the home of Premier League club Manchester City F.C., with a domestic football capacity of 53,400, making it the 6th-largest ...
on Friday Night Football. He kicked a remarkable goal whilst falling to the ground after attempting a specky
A spectacular mark (also known as a specky, speckie, speccy, screamer or hanger) is a mark (or catch) in Australian rules football that typically involves a player jumping up on the back of another player.
The spectacular mark has become a much ...
in the goalsquare and also had two long kicks at goal touched on the line. In Melbourne's round 15 victory over Port Adelaide, Jurrah scored four goals and assisted in multiple other goals for which he was rewarded with an AFL Rising Star
The AFL Rising Star is an Australian rules football award presented annually to the player adjudged the best young player in the Australian Football League (AFL) for the year. It was first presented in the 1993 season, and was won by Nathan Buc ...
nomination. While the Demons struggled for success on the field he became a shining light for supporters. He was given the moniker "Warlpiri Wizard" for his scintillating style of play. He carries on the tradition of highly skilled indigenous forwards set by the original Demon "Wizard" Jeff Farmer.
In November 2009, Jurrah returned to Yuendumu with the Melbourne president Jim Stynes
James Stynes OAM (23 April 196620 March 2012) was an Irish-born footballer who converted from Gaelic football to Australian rules football. Playing for the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL), he went on to become ...
and Channel 7's Tim Watson
Timothy Michael Watson (born 13 July 1961) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). After retiring from the game, he has continued working in the Australian footb ...
. The trip was a chance for Jurrah's family and friends at Yuendumu to celebrate his achievement and a chance for the Melbourne Football Club to see where Jurrah had come from. A story about the visit was aired on Channel 7's '' Sunday Night'' program.
Close to the start of the 2010 season, Jurrah required surgery for a dislocation of his shoulder. The injury was caused by an awkward fall during a practice match with the Adelaide Crows. Shortly after, Chris Connolly from the Melbourne Football Club announced that Jurrah would be out for approximately 16 weeks.
Jurrah made a successful return to the senior Melbourne team, after spending several weeks playing with Melbourne's VFL affiliate the Casey Scorpions
The Casey Football Club, nicknamed the "Demons" and formerly the "Scorpions", is an Australian rules football club based in Cranbourne East, Victoria. The club, which was known until 2005 as the Springvale Football Club and the Casey Scorpions ...
, kicking two goals in the Demons' round 15 win against Essendon Essendon may refer to:
Australia
*Electoral district of Essendon
*Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington
* Essendon, Victoria
**Essendon railway station
**Essendon Airport
* Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League
United Ki ...
.
Legal issues
In March 2012 Jurrah was charged over an alleged machete attack at an Alice Springs town camp. He was subsequently found not guilty in March 2013.
In January 2013 Jurrah was charged with drink driving
Drunk driving (or drink-driving in British English) is the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. A small increase in the blood alcohol content increases the relative risk of a motor vehicle crash.
In the United States, alcohol is invo ...
in Adelaide after recording a blood alcohol content
Blood alcohol content (BAC), also called blood alcohol concentration or blood alcohol level, is a measurement of alcohol intoxication used for legal or medical purposes; it is expressed as mass of alcohol per volume or mass of blood. For example ...
of 0.27%. He failed to attend his court hearing in March 2013. The case was subsequently finalised in his absence, with Jurrah being fined and banned from driving for two years.
In March 2013 Jurrah was charged with four counts of aggravated assault in Alice Springs, he subsequently pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful assault, and was sentenced to six months in jail time.
In December 2013 Jurrah was charged with driving offences after being involved in a high-speed police chase.
In April 2014 Jurrah was charged with aggravated assault for attacking a woman, causing her harm, and allegedly making threats with a tyre iron and a knife.
In August 2022 Jurrah was charged after allegedly breaking into a house and assaulting a woman with a machete and is currently in custody awaiting a court hearing on October 13 2022.
Achievements
Football
* AFL Rising Star
The AFL Rising Star is an Australian rules football award presented annually to the player adjudged the best young player in the Australian Football League (AFL) for the year. It was first presented in the 1993 season, and was won by Nathan Buc ...
nomination: Round 15, 2009
* Harold Ball Memorial Trophy
The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed the Demons, is a professional Australian rules football club that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. It is based in Melbourne, Victoria, and plays its home ...
, Melbourne FC best first-year player, 2009
* 2010 Mark of the Year
The annual Australian Football League Mark of the Year competition (currently also known as the Four'N Twenty AFL Mark of the Year) is a sporting award that celebrates each season's best mark. A mark is the action of a player cleanly catchin ...
winner
* 2011 Melbourne FC leading goalkicker (40)
Other
* Northern Territory Young Australian of the Year 2010
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
Yuendumu Magpies
MFC Player Profile
Aboriginal Rules – A year with the Yuendumu Magpies
Mt Theo Program in Yuendumu
DemonWiki profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jurrah, Liam
Melbourne Football Club players
Living people
1988 births
Indigenous Australian players of Australian rules football
Australian rules footballers from the Northern Territory
Nightcliff Football Club players
Casey Demons players
Tiwi Bombers Football Club players
Old Xaverians Football Club players
Warlpiri people