small indeed of a person taking up a new run being able to maintain possession of his place and property without having recourse to such means -- sometimes by wholesale .”
A distasteful and disturbing blight that in whispered tones stands to this day yet , for the people of Harrow the indigenous culture is important , it forms who they are , it forms their past , their present and their future . This is a community that is proud , unashamed to speak of the past , and reflect with dignity the legend of their greatest son .
At the age of 27 Unaarrimin , Johnny Mullagh , was selected to represent a colonial Aboriginal cricket team to tour England . In 1868 Australia was yet to be recognised as a nation and the novelty of an Aboriginal touring team was not lost on the ‘ home ’ country . Led by Unaarrimin , the ‘ Australian ’ team played with dignity and pride , demonstrating their skills both sporting and traditional .
Unintentionally , this first touring eleven , initially led by Tom Wills , was perhaps the first steps to reconciliation , a step to bring peoples so vehemently opposed together .
Captain and coach of the early team , Tom Wills , the very same that invented Australian Rules Football , was the first to make such steps , just five years earlier his father was one of 18 that had been attacked and killed by local Aboriginal people in Queensland . Wills understood the culture , the people and respected both yet ultimately the event would take his life when he suicided at the age of 44 , an undiagnosed victim of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder .
Wills never ventured to England with the team however , his first steps were an early sign that reconciliation and respect can work on both sides .
Much has been written about the exploits of the Aboriginal team , in particular Unaarrimin who many
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