THE Lawrence brothers have done Queensland proud after competing at the AFL National Inclusion Carnival.
The event hosted by AFL Australia aims to support people with disabilities by letting them become involved in Australian football.
John and Brad Lawrence were selected as team captains to play for Queensland for the four-day event at the Gold Coast last month.
Vice-captain Brad was voted by the state’s coaching staff as the winner of the Queensland Carnival Award.
He said he was surprised he received the trophy and was titled the most valuable player.
“I was mind blown when I got it, I wasn’t expecting it at all,” he said.
“When I’m on the field, I really try my hardest and I never give up.”
Despite the praise he received, Brad said group effort took the team to the semi-finals.
Queensland’s AFL Inclusion team won five out of seven games against other states in the carnival’s first event, to determine their sporting level.
After earning a place in Division 1 during the Lighting Round, the Queenslanders played in the semi-finals and placed fourth overall in the competition.
As team captain, John said he encouraged his team to give it their all and he was proud of their achievements.
“We think we did pretty well. Last year we only won one or two games and this year we won five,” he said.
“We are improving and it shows our competitors that we can be at their level and beat them.”
Brothers’ talent shine
The duo said they were always involved in sporting events, including swimming and athletics when growing up.
Brad played AFL in a Health and Physical Education class while John was dabbling in new things when they discovered their passion for AFL.
“I did this course in year 12 and I had to go to schools to teach students some AFL drills and I was hooked on it ever since,” he said.
The Woodridge-born brothers have played AFL inclusion for the past four years and had represented their state in the annual competition without fail.
“We like seeing and meeting new people with different disabilities and having fun on the field,” John said.
He said they wanted to inspire more people with disabilities to play sports.
John said the duo thanked his parents, grandmother and coaches who supported them through their journey.
The Lawrence brothers said the hoped to join a sports club next year and to one day represent Australia in AFL.
Jocelyn Garcia
Jocelyn is a journalist at the Redland City Bulletin, covering education issues and school stories. She was a former journalist at Beaudesert Times, reporting about crime, schools and agriculture.
Jocelyn is a journalist at the Redland City Bulletin, covering education issues and school stories. She was a former journalist at Beaudesert Times, reporting about crime, schools and agriculture.
