Adam GoodesPrint Page

The sculpture commemorates indigenous AFL footballer Adam Goodes.

The sculpture depicts Goodes doing a war cry, a gesture he made after scoring the first goal at the 2015 AFL Indigenous Round. Goodes spent his entire 18-year career in the AFL with Sydney Swans, playing a record 372 games for the club.

In that time, he was awarded two Brownlow Medals and three Bob Skilton Medals, won two premierships, earned four All-Australian blazers, was named an AFL Rising Star and was named in the Indigenous team of the century.

In 2014 he was named Australian of the Year and established the Goodes - O'Loughline Foundation which supports young Indigenous people with access to education.

Adam Goodes took a strong stand against racism, which led to him being racially abused at matches on a regular basis. In June 2019 the Australian Football League (AFL) and its 18 clubs apologised unreservedly to Goodes for failing to support him adequately in the face of this abuse.

Sydney have secretly unveiled a bronze sculpture of their Indigenous superstar Adam Goodes out the front of the Swans’ new headquarters. The statue of Goodes performing his famous ‘war cry’ when the Swans played Carlton in the Indigenous Round in 2015 was made public in the hours before the Friday night clash between the same clubs at the SCG.

Goodes was there for the unveiling at Moore Park, but after distancing himself from the AFL following his painful exit from the game eight years ago, the dual Brownlow medallist wanted no attention prior to the low-key ceremony.

The sculpture was created by artist Cathy Weiszmann, who worked closely with Goodes to recreate the historic pose.

“Very impressed, Cathy did a fantastic job,” Goodes said at the unveiling. “The Swans play Carlton tonight, so it takes you back to that moment in the game and obviously then what happens from this moment. A lot of things started to change off the field in relation to me, but more importantly I had made a clear decision on the field that I wanted to celebrate my culture. I thought doing it in Indigenous Round might be a safe place to start.”

Goodes’ former Swans teammate and fellow Indigenous champion Michael O’Loughlin showcased the statue alongside benefactor Basil Sellars. “It’s pretty incredible isn’t it,” O’Loughlin said. “To have the honour of unveiling that was one of the highlights of my life. When people are walking past it’s going to be another talking point, a discussion and a bit of education around it.”

Swans chairman Andrew Pridham said the unveiling was a proud moment for the football club that moved into their new headquarters in Moore Park earlier this year. “It’s absolutely incredible, it depicts the moment and it depicts Adam perfectly,” Pridham said.

Indigenous former Swans players, as well as members of the current AFL and AFLW teams, joined the 372-game icon at the unveiling. The dual Swans premiership player has stayed in contact with the club since his retirement but remains distraught about the AFL’s treatment of him during the infamous booing saga that marred his final season in 2015.

Goodes has repeatedly knocked back an invitation to be inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, where he could one day be elevated to legend status if he accepts. The 43-year-old last year attended the Swans’ 10-year premiership reunion celebrating the club’s 2012 grand final victory but since retiring has mostly focused on pursuits outside of football.
The Guardian, 26 May 2023. 

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