When the Yuendumu Sports Weekend committee met this week the first item of business was “What can we do to show our support for Adam Goodes?“

The 24 men and women responsible for the running of the longest-running–52 years–local sports carnival in the NT were saddened by what they saw happening to one of football’s brightest sons.

Sammy Butcher, ex-Warumpi band guitarist and Central Land Council member, called up from Papunya asking the same question as did Lance Turner from Nyirripi and men and women from a dozen or more of the far-flung central desert communities that flock to Yuendumu on the first weekend in August every year for a celebration of sports and culture.

The committee sent out a strong message. “We are not ashamed to be Yapa” and the 2015 Yuendumu Sports carnival will be dedicated to showing the rest of the country that they take a strong stand against racism.

The Northern Myth spoke earlier today with Warren Williams, senior convenor of the Yuendumu Sports weekend as he sat in the announcers stand watching a game between the Willowra “double-blues” and the Wulaign Blues. He told me that “all that trouble” around Adam Goodes made him feel “no good.”

Chairperson of the Warlpiri Youth Development Aboriginal Corporation (WYDAC, formerly known as Mt Theo Program) and NT Senior Australian of the Year Eddie Jampijinpa Robertson made his support for his good friend Adam Goodes known.

And the Yuendumu Sports Committee had a plan.

All of the teams from across central Australia that come for the Yuendumu Sports agreed that we would do what we could to show our support and respect for Adam Goodes and every Aboriginal sportsman and woman across the country. This is an important thing for us and our kids. We can’t let that business happen without standing up.

Warren told me that “We want you to tell Adam Goodes that he is welcome in Yuendumu and anywhere in central Australia anytime.“

Local Jimmy Langdon told The Northern Myth that the weekend would be a show of mumbumanyi, a Warlpiri word meaning respect, and more, for Adam Goodes.

Thanks to Liam Campbell for the great photos.