POLLY’S STORY HITS THE SCREEN
AN intimate journey back through the life of Graham “Polly” Farmer will remain a special legacy for the family of arguably the greatest footballer to pull on the boots.
The revealing documentary, to be screened on NITV on May 30, is one of four broadcasts — which also feature Barry Cable, Nicky Winmar and brothers Jim and Phil Krakouer — under the banner Nyoongar Footy Magic.
Inspired by the 2005 selection of the Indigenous Team of the Century, some of the game’s most famous identities chose a Noongar Team of the Century, featuring many of WA’s greatest football champions.
The team was selected by AFL legend Kevin Sheedy and WA football greats Mal Brown, Cable, John Todd, Larry Kickett and Grant Dorrington.
Two-minute clips of all 24 players, ranging from past stars such as Stephen Michael and Derek Kickett to current guns such as Lance Franklin and brothers Stephen and Brad Hill, will also be rolled out in various formats and locations.
The series includes a brief history of the Noongar people.
The Farmer documentary is described by series narrator Ernie Dingo as a story of “extraordinary determination and achievements against all odds”.
The documentary highlights his early days at Sister Kate’s children’s home and how he formed his football brilliance with a hand-medown shoe on his left foot in the South West town of Greenbushes.
Now 83 and living with dementia, Farmer has watched his documentary recently with old WA football friends such as John Wynne and Kevin McGill.
His daughter Kim said the project would be forever special for his family.
“It is a really beautiful legacy because they’ve brought together his whole life and done it really eloquently,” Kim said.
“When he’s watched it, he’s really engaged with it and it’s amazing we’ve got this documentary reflecting on all these Noongar players.”
Series producer, Beyond West’s Harry Bardwell, said he was proud of the project, which took two years to put together, aided by archivists from the AFL, Channel 7, the State Library of WA and other collectors from the players’ hometowns.
“We wanted to cement the reputations of these guys for history and make a record of their achievements,” Mr Bardwell said.
“The contribution of the Noongar players to Australian football has been a very significant thing and I hope this reflects a bit of that. But we also wanted to talk about them as a nation of people with their own culture, language and history.”
A two-minute tribute to former West Coast star Phil Narkle will be screened at Optus Stadium during the club’s game against Richmond on May 20.
Winmar is also expected to be at the ground on June 2 when he is featured during the Eagles’ match against his former club St Kilda.
The tributes to all 24 Noongar legends are also expected to be screened at Perth’s Yagan Square from the start of next month as well as in Melbourne’s Federation Square during Reconciliation Week, including before Michael Long’s Long March on June 2.