In the name of the father: Maurice Rioli jnr arrives at Richmond

Maurice remembers his dad teaching him how to fish. And shoot. But he can't really remember his dad teaching him how to play footy.

This isn't surprising. You don't get taught to play football on the Tiwi Islands. Not when you are a Rioli. Not when your dad is Maurice Rioli.

Maurice Rioli jnr has been picked up by his dad's club.Credit: Scott McNaughton

Maurice snr didn't play football like he had been taught; he felt the game. Kicking the ball was not a motor skill, it was an expression. Maurice jnr has some of his dad's intuitive understanding. That is not to burden him with an expectation of equivalence, just an appreciation of his approach.

"MJ" is small, like his dad, but plays more as a forward than midfielder, though he does some things and turns unexpectedly at times the way Maurice snr did. Like his dad he is now at Richmond, taken at pick 51 after the Tigers matched Essendon's bid for him.

MJ with sister Mia and Tigers great Matthew Richardson.Credit: Richmond Football Club

MJ has a 15-year-old sister Maria – she prefers Mia – who plays with the under-18s in Darwin and for the NT Thunder. They played at a carnival in Tasmania last year. It was seven degrees. Mia had never been so cold; she couldn't feel her fingers. She kicked 11.

Maurice didn't just give his son his name, he gave him a legacy. He bequeathed a reputation at Richmond and in footballthat was in some ways bigger than the game. Maurice snr was of the generation of Indigenous players, like the Krakouer brothers, who accelerated change in the game and opened the eyes of those involved more clearly to Indigenous players.

"I have a few memories of him. I don't think he taught me footy, I can't remember really, he used to take me to watch the footy in Darwin or back on the Islands, the local footy," MJ said.

"He would take us out hunting. I love fishing. I catch barras most of the time. Turtle you have to wait like an hour for them to get up and get them. Go shooting, shoot geese, magpie geese.

A young MJ stands in front of the locker bearing his dad's name.Credit: Richmond Football Club

"I watched a few highlights of dad, which was pretty good to see where I get my bits from him. I can see some bits. I don't model myself on him. I'm more a small forward obviously and just – hard, I would say."

Maurice snr won a Norm Smith Medal in 1982. His relatives began to arrive in the game – Daniel, Dean and of course Cyril – and now, with MJ at Richmond too the son he had late in life has also arrived in the game.

"Christmas Day [it's the] 10 years anniversary [of Maurice snr's death]. He would be very proud. Very proud he is at Richmond," said MJ's mum Alberta. Maurice snr was just 53 when he died of a heart attack on Christmas Day in 2010.

"He [MJ] was very young when he came down. It was very hard. His dad wanted him to get an education. He would be very proud of him."

Maurice Rioli jnr carries his dad's name. He also might carry his dad's number.

MJ's nephew, Daniel Rioli – yes, nephew – wears it for Richmond now. Maurice snr's brother is Daniel's granddad. Both boys find it funny that Daniel is five years older than his uncle. He calls MJ "Little Unc".

The pair has already talked about handing on the No.17 and Daniel is open to giving up the number for his little uncle. At least, that is what MJ says. Friends laugh that MJ likes a joke and Daniel might not yet know that he has made the offer. But now it's in print, so consider the offer made.

It was Alberta who drove the journey for MJ to follow his dad's path to Punt Road. Maurice snr died when MJ was just eight.

The tragedy only firmed her resolve that MJ follow the dream they all had for him to get an education and see where life, see where football, could take him.

He went to Darwin for year nine and then moved to Melbourne and to Scotch College when he was in year 10. He met Max Suttle there, and they became friends, along with another kid: Jamarra Ugle-Hagan.

The Suttles became MJ's Melbourne family over the next few years. He would spend weekends and breaks there, and holiday with them. This year, during COVID-19 lockdown, he has lived with them.

"Max, MJ and Jamarra are all mates from school. They don't live in each other's pockets but they are close. He is a great kid, MJ, he is just part of the family," said Andrew Suttle, Max's dad.

"It's pretty amazing, his mum Alberta. It makes me emotional thinking about it as a parent. For her to do what she did, it was pretty full on. She sent her son away at that age after her husband died, she wanted an education for him.

"She is tough and he is tough as well, the resilience is amazing. She has made it happen, she has been fantastic, and he has responded.

"All the challenges that keep getting laid out in front of him, and he keeps stepping up each time."

Essendon spoke to MJ a couple of times, though surprisingly didn't list him as an NGA player, despite being from their zone. They asked him in their first conversation whether he'd like to come to Essendon.

He was taken aback. Of course not. Why would he want to play anywhere else if it was his choice? He wanted to play for Richmond, like his dad. He later added more diplomatically that playing AFL was his first priority and where he played was the next concern.

"It's crazy," he said of finally being drafted by Richmond after years and moving to Melbourne to pursue a dream.

"My dad would be proud of me, from where I came from, how far I came. I'm very proud of him."