Rossville’s Rushon George and Darnley Island’s Masie Mosby part of AFL Flying Boomerangs

Two Cairns players in the Flying Boomerangs AFL Indigenous team have returned from Melbourne with renewed game commitment.

Two talented young Aussie rules players who made selection for a national Indigenous team have returned with stars in their yes and a heart full of dreams for an AFL career.

Earlier this month Rossville’s Rushon George, 14, and Darnley Island’s Masie Mosby, 16, who are in grade 9 and 10 respectively and board at AFL Cape York House in Cairns, participated in a five-day camp as part of the Flying Boomerangs AFL development program for boys aged up to 16 years..

The duo spoke with Samuel Davis at the Cape York Weekly about how excited they were to represent their region and state.

George said the opportunity to play against another representative squad and learn about other cultures was a fantastic highlight.

“Getting to meet boys from around Australia and playing with them on the field was great,” he said.

“We did a war cry before the game.

“I felt pride and was really happy that I got to play down there … but it was pretty cold.”

Cairns footy sensation Masie Mosby was part of the – Flying Boomerangs who played a World Game Day match in Melbourne. Picture: AFL Photographer Riley Lockett/AFL Photos

Mosby said when he rang his mum to give her the news he had been selected for the highly regarded Flying Boomerangs AFL leadership program, they both were in tears.

“Yeah, I was starting to cry too, but I tried to stay strong to make her feel better,” he said.

“It was a good experience to play somewhere new in an all-Indigenous side,”

AFL Cape York power duo (left) Masie Mosby, 16, and (right) Rushon George, 14, represented the? Flying Boomerangs in a representative clash against a World Team in Melbourne in October. Picture: Samuel Davis

According to AFL Cape York operations officer Jake O’Halloran, the pair were elected after attending an AFL Diversity camp on the Sunshine Coast.

He said the pair were thrilled to head to Melbourne for the five-day footy adventure where they were part of a team which comprised 25 of the best Indigenous players from across the country.

“It was a great opportunity for the boys,” O’Halloran said.

“They toured St Kilda footy club and attended the draft combine before playing against a World Team.”

O’Halloran said the World Team comprises some of the most talented boys playing Aussie rules who are from a multicultural yet non-Indigenous culture.

After the Flying Boomerangs experience, O’Halloran said the talented pair will train with Cairns-based members of the Gold Coast Suns Academy until the end of the school year, while also running onto the ground for the Cairns Eagles.

“These boys are in boarding for around 40 weeks of the year,” O’Halloran said.

“It means they spend a crazy amount of time away from their families.

“To give up that time to pursue their footy shows a lot of resilience and dedication.”

Originally published as Rossville’s Rushon George and Darnley Island’s Masie Mosby part of AFL Flying Boomerangs