In 1970, as Indigenous Australia was getting politically organised, a Koori football club and gym was created in Melbourne called the Fitzroy Stars. Besides being a great football team, winning five premierships in 15 years, the Fitzroy Stars was the hub of Melbourne's Koori community. Lionel Rose was an inaugural Board member of the gym.
The football club moved between different football leagues throughout Melbourne and achieved a deal of success during this period. The club disbanded in 1997 (when the league in which they were playing collapsed) and re-formed in the Northern Football League in 2008.
Over the past three years, the Stars have been working in partnership with Oxfam Australia to rebuild the Club, which in turn will work to improve the emotional and social health of the Koori population in Melbourne. The club promotes health and fitness, and also helps build self esteem among the players. It offers pathways to employment and education as well as serving as a meeting place for the wider Aboriginal community.
Visit the following page to read more about the Fitzroy Stars
http://www.oxfam.org.au/explore/indigenous-australia/features/the-fitzroy-stars-football-club
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