Port Adelaide’s Aliir Aliir has called out footy supporters who feel the need to racially abuse players, whether it be verbally or via social media.
Aliir’s teammate Junior Rioli was the subject of a racial post on social media in the wake of his side’s narrow win over Essendon on Saturday.
The Power released a statement regarding Rioli, who has been suspended for two matches for striking Bombers defender Jordan Ridley, and now Aliir has spoken out in defence of his colleague and friend.
The defender condemned those who act in such a manner when all that is at stake is a game of football.
“Us as a club, we’ve been able to get around him and put our arm around him and just let him know we’re there for him,” Aliir said on SEN’s Sportsday SA.
“This racism, as much as I’d like it out of the game, it’s always going to be there.
“It’s s--t, I hate it, I hate people going through it.
“You should be able to come to the game and support your team, whether your team loses or wins. You can’t be going out and throwing racist comments out there just because your team lost a close game or a game they should have won, whatever the case may be.
“You have no right to do that. Just come to the footy and enjoy the game. That’s why we play, we play footy for the love and the fans come and watch us for the love of it.
“You shouldn’t be going there to target certain players.”
Born in Kenya to South Sudanese parents, Aliir has himself been the subject of racism over his career, but always finds solace through the support of the wider AFL community and those closest to him.
“It does annoy you, but the good thing is the amount of people in the AFL community that get around you, from players you played against, former players who send you a message just to say, ‘We’re here for you’,” he added.
“Those little things are the ones you appreciate a lot and get you over thinking about it too much. I know sometimes it’s tough but you’ve got your family that’s always been there for you and wrap their arms around you and give you full support.
“It’s a s--t situation to be in because I know exactly how Willie (Junior) would be feeling. All I can do as a friend and as a teammate is to let him know I’m here for him for whatever the needs.”
Despite the issues, Aliir is confident that the Power have in place a great community of Indigenous and First Nations former players to help the new generation deal with any problems in this unwanted realm.
“The good thing about our footy club is we’re bringing those players back in, just to be able to chat,” Aliir said.
“Because there are young Indigenous kids getting drafted… so just to be able to give them confidence with what they went through and how they dealt with certain things.
“To be able to give the young kids confidence that if they see something, say it, rather than being quiet about it.
“I think our club does it better than anyone.”
Listen to Aliir below: