It was a long way from the bright lights of the MCG or Adelaide Oval, but football superstars Eddie Betts and Tyson Stengle were among those to light up the field over the weekend. 

The pair laced up the boots for the annual South Australian Aboriginal Football and Netball Carnival, held at Ravendale Sporting Complex in Port Lincoln, on Barngarla Country.

The event draws Indigenous communities from around the state, with teams travelling from far as Raukaan, 800 kilometres away, and Coober Pedy, 900 kilometres away.

Twenty years in the making

It was a homecoming of sorts for Betts, who turned out for old club Mallee Park, while Stengle obtained clearance from AFL side Geelong to represent Koonibba, a tiny community on the edge of the Nullabor Plain, with whom he has familial links.

The last time Betts wore a Mallee Park jumper, he was celebrating an Under 17s premiership about 20 years ago.

“I was only 15 the last time, I was playing with today’s coach Harry [Miller] and we won that grand final actually.

“I never got to play in a carnival, so I’m pretty wrapped because growing up I used to watch my dad and my uncles and my big brothers play in these.”

The carnival has been held annually since 1968, with netball included 50 years ago this year, in 1974.

The atmosphere at the event felt like a festival, with Betts one of the headline stars. He said sport acted as a connector for the huge crowd that travelled long distances for the event. 

“It’s what brings communities together, football and netball and sport is that driver. We love it. 

“People travelling from far and wide to celebrate our culture. 

“Most of my family, that last game against Koonibba. It’s basically one big family playing against each other. 

“It’s like playing in the backyard together.”

Huge crowds

The carnival is held annually, with a different location each year, and marks one of the biggest celebrations of Aboriginal culture on the South Australian calendar. 

Several thousand people came through the gates over the course of the weekend.

Great family occasion

Chairperson of the Port Lincoln host committee Rebecca Miller said people came from far and wide to connect with each other, and Indigenous culture.

“People have come out to watch them play but I definitely think without Eddie or Tyson, we still would have had a huge crowd,” she said.

“It’s great seeing family, you know, that I know have travelled from a really long way away.”

The football Grand Final pitted the two stars against each other, with Port Lincoln’s Mallee Park taking the title on a windy day. 

Koonibba is the oldest surviving Aboriginal football club in Australia, having been established in 1906.

All-Australian Stengle snapped a number of trademark goals through the weekend, delighting the crowd, while Betts defied a back he described as “seizing up” to fly for a massive mark attempt in the grand final.

Both football and netball were played in a round-robin format, over two divisions. Kaurna and Mallee Park took out the Division One honours, while Flinders Far North and Port Augusta were winners in Division Two.