Story by KATE BASTIANS SANDGROPERS may find it heartbreaking to imagine a time when Aussie kids were handed a round ball to play with instead of an oval one. But Jan Callum says the Youth Australia League had a big job on its hands when it set about the task of introducing junior footy to WA.“Because at the time the majority of parents were Europeans, so naturally their children were playing soccer,” explains Ms Callum, who is the curator at the YAL, which was formed in 1905. “J.J Simons who was a real Australian said: ‘This is Australia and the kids should be playing Australian rules’.” “He went to the WA Football Association and with the help of several headmasters got football introduced into schools.” Ms Callum says the YAL also advocated education through travel–their boys would travel to different countries to learn more about the world and also act as “ambassadors” for Australia. She says the gifts they were given on their travels are still helping to educate people about different lands. The YAL museum, which will be open to the public during Heritage Perth Heritage Days, boasts many interesting artefacts such as the US presidential wreath at the time of  Hubert Hoover’s inauguration. Ms Callum says the YAL were presented with the wreath—the only one to ever leave America. “We’ve also got the eagle that was on the American flagpole when they were here in Crawley Bay, during the war, between 1940 and 1947.” They used Crawley—on the University of Western Australia’s doorstep—as a base while they bombarded New Guinea at night, she said.Ms Callum says the YAL is in the process of remodelling itself because she says the former aim of promoting an outdoorsy lifestyle for kids is proving too difficult these days “when kids prefer to sit infront of a computer instead of running around outside and enjoying themselves.” They will use money from the sale of property to fund scholarships for kids rather than running camps in the school holidays.The museum will be open on November 12 and 13 from 10am till 2pm as part of Heritage Perth Heritage Days. View high resolution

Story by KATE BASTIANS


SANDGROPERS may find it heartbreaking to imagine a time when Aussie kids were handed a round ball to play with instead of an oval one.

But Jan Callum says the Youth Australia League had a big job on its hands when it set about the task of introducing junior footy to WA.
“Because at the time the majority of parents were Europeans, so naturally their children were playing soccer,” explains Ms Callum, who is the curator at the YAL, which was formed in 1905.


“J.J Simons who was a real Australian said: ‘This is Australia and the kids should be playing Australian rules’.”

“He went to the WA Football Association and with the help of several headmasters got football introduced into schools.”

Ms Callum says the YAL also advocated education through travel–their boys would travel to different countries to learn more about the world and also act as “ambassadors” for Australia.

She says the gifts they were given on their travels are still helping to educate people about different lands.

The YAL museum, which will be open to the public during Heritage Perth Heritage Days, boasts many interesting artefacts such as the US presidential wreath at the time of  Hubert Hoover’s inauguration.

Ms Callum says the YAL were presented with the wreath—the only one to ever leave America.

“We’ve also got the eagle that was on the American flagpole when they were here in Crawley Bay, during the war, between 1940 and 1947.”

They used Crawley—on the University of Western Australia’s doorstep—as a base while they bombarded New Guinea at night, she said.
Ms Callum says the YAL is in the process of remodelling itself because she says the former aim of promoting an outdoorsy lifestyle for kids is proving too difficult these days “when kids prefer to sit infront of a computer instead of running around outside and enjoying themselves.”

They will use money from the sale of property to fund scholarships for kids rather than running camps in the school holidays.
The museum will be open on November 12 and 13 from 10am till 2pm as part of Heritage Perth Heritage Days.