I talked in Parliament about the annual presentation night of the Upfield Soccer Club. I took to the floor, as I do each year, with Club President Wally Hanna, Club Manager Hani Pito and special guest Hakeem Al-Araibi, to hand out trophies to our players.
Our players range from juniors to seniors and include boys and girls. It was one of the biggest events yet and a sure sign of the club's growing popularity in my local community. The story of the Upfield Soccer Club is a true migrant story. Three decades ago, the Greek community of Broadmeadows formed the club originally called Andromidos—a nice Greek name. It was founded by Broadmeadows locals Jim Massis, Demitris Fokianos, Petros Pandazopoulos, John Patsikatheodorou, George Xiniaros and many others. Along the way, a young Wally Hanna, from the emerging Iraqi community, came to play, and the rest is history. Wally today runs what is now called the Upfield Soccer Club and is doing a terrific job of serving the needs of our newly arrived. In recent years, the club has welcomed refugees from Syria and engaged them as players, coaches and volunteers. And the Upfield Soccer Club is very proud of the fact it has recruited 45 female players this season in its ongoing campaign to create gender equality at the club and foster inclusiveness.
