Jarman Impey making connections in the Top End thanks to the teachings of his late father

Jarman Impey’s Indigenous connection might come from this mother but, without her in his life, it was left to his late father Glenn to teach him about his heritage. Here’s how the young Hawk has become a teacher in his own right.

Jarman Impey has become a popular figure at Hawthorn.

Jarman Impey feels at home.

It might seem a strange assertion given the exciting Hawthorn playmaker is more than 3000km from his original hometown of Shepparton, and even further still from where he now lives in Melbourne, but he couldn’t look more comfortable in his surroundings.

He’s sitting at the base of a huge tree at the Wugularr School in the remote indigenous community of Beswick, almost 120km southeast of Katherine in the Northern Territory.

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He’s chatting to the local kids about footy, the importance of health, sport and schooling in their lives ... and then some more footy.

They flock to him as if he was Cyril Rioli. Well, almost.

“The people here are just awesome,” Impey says with a smile almost as wide as the kids looking back at him.

“For us to come to a new place and for them to be so welcoming is amazing. I can’t believe how good it has been.”

Impey and indigenous teammate Mathew Walker — along with Irishman Conor Nash — have spent the past four days visiting the Katherine community, where the Hawks have long been involved in a number of initiatives centred on indigenous health and education as well as assisting in mental health and wellbeing programs in the community.

For 23-year-old Impey, who is about to kickstart his second season with the Hawks, it has been a journey as much for himself as those he has connected with.

For family, and a sense of community, are the two unmistakeable driving points of his life, even if both have provided their own challenges.

Impey comes from the Yorta Yorta “mob”, as does Walker, who is from Savernake, on the other side of the Murray River.

Jarmin Impey takes a selfie with some excited kids at Wugularr School at Beswick in the Northern Territory. Picture: Michael Klein

But while his indigenous connection comes from this mother — who has not played an active role in his life — it was his late father Glenn who tried to teach Jarman and his younger sister Paigan about their heritage.

“Dad was white, but he tried to show us as much as he could,” he said.

“He was a single parent and he brought my sister and I up on his own.

“You don’t realise the sacrifices he had to make to help us until now that he is gone.”

Glenn Impey ensured Jarman and Paigan knew basics of their culture — even if it was different to his own — and ended up being an accomplished didgeridoo player to boot.

That memory makes Impey smile again.

“Dad grew up with a lot of indigenous boys and he knew plenty about the town (Shepparton) and its history,” Impey said.

“He played the didgeridoo amazingly well. He had all the breathing spot on, and I haven’t got that down pat yet myself.”

No one was prouder than his father when Impey was drafted to Port Adelaide as pick 21 in the 2013 draft for he knew it wasn’t just good for his football, but it would also fast-track his son’s connections to his Aboriginal heritage.

“Once I got to Port Adelaide, it started to open my eyes up to my culture a lot more, and I’ve grabbed the opportunity with both hands ever since,” he said.

“Dad loved the cultural way at Port Adelaide. He would always get around the ‘Brother Boys’ over there. They loved him.”

Jarman Impey felt right at home in the remote indigenous community of Beswick. Picture: Michael Klein

One of those “Brother Boys”, Chad Wingard, has now joined Impey at Hawthorn, a move he says “was just meant to happen”.

Impey might still be in Adelaide now if the cruel hand of fate hadn’t intervened.

His father fought and beaten cancer when Jarman was 14, but sadly it returned a few years ago.

Glenn Impey fought it as hard as he could — and got to see his son’s final three games of the 2016 season — before passing away.

“Those games were weird, because it was like ‘this is the last game my Dad will see me play’, and he has been watching me playing since I was a kid,” he said.

“I was just trying to hold onto my emotions without people saying ‘what is wrong with this guy?’ No one really knows what is going on in other people’s lives, but it was a very hard time. I was at least able to say my goodbyes.

“He kept fighting for as long as he could. I was there for his last breath, and I was like ‘Dad, what are you still trying to fight for?’”

His father passed away late in 2016, and Jarman knew that the 2017 season was always going to be his last before returning to Victoria.

He needed to be there for his sister, who is 19, and now works with Richmond’s indigenous program, and for his half-brother Joelden, who is now 10, who lives with his own father.

“All I want to do now is to make my Dad proud him, and to be thankful for all the sacrifices he made,” he said of the legacy his father left him.

Part of that comes from the tattoos on his body that reflect some of the ones his father had. They have been inked by the same artist.

It also comes with the lifelong passion with cars and motorbikes, a passion they shared.

Impey’s pride and joy are his father’s Harley Davidson motorcycle, and the red 1972 HQ GTS Monaro, the latter which Glenn rebuilt from an empty shell.

He finds as much freedom on the roads as he does playing footy.

Impey jumped at the chance to join Hawthorn at the end of the 2017 season. Picture: Michael Klein

The chance to move to Hawthorn at the end of the 2017 season — a club with an equally impressive recent history in terms of its indigenous commitment — was too good an opportunity to pass up.

He was eager to work alongside and learn from Shaun Burgoyne and Cyril Rioli — albeit only briefly with Rioli as it turned out.

“Shauny has been incredible for me, what a man ... I’ve learnt so much from him,” he said. “He is all about family.”

The move has been good for his AFL career too, after a strong 2018 that included 24 games — a career season best — taking him to 99 games in total, as well as two finals appearances.

But it has further strengthened his already tight relationship with his siblings, as well as paternal nanna Denise, who often makes the trip from Shepparton to see him play.

Impey recently honoured the memory of Denise’s uncle, Kenneth Shepherd — his own great, great uncle — when he found his grave on the Kokoda Track late last year during the trip with the Hawks.

Kenneth was only 23 when he was killed in October 1942 — the same age as Jarman is now.

“It was an amazing experience,” he said.

“I can see why Hawthorn goes to Kokoda.”

Impey carried a walking stick with him all the way, and plans to frame the stick that helped him get through as a keepsake of his journey.

He aspires to be a role model to others now, including to Walker, who has just completed his first AFL pre-season.

“This trip up here has been great for Matty and I to get to know each other a bit better,” he said.

“I just said to him, if he ever needs to talk to me about anything, I’m here for him, whether it is about footy or life decisions.”

As tough as the past few years have been, Impey is grateful for what he has, and wants to give more back to his family, his footy club, his teammates and to his community.

That much was obvious in Katherine this week as the kids rallied around him, and dreamt of what they could do with their own lives into the future.

Originally published as Jarman Impey making connections in the Top End thanks to the teachings of his late father