BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls will be returning to North Stradbroke Island (Minjerribah) again in 2025 for their annual Indigenous recognition match.
The partnership continues into it’s 12th year with Deadly Choices, Yulu Burri Ba Aboriginal Health Corporation, and Redland City Council, to relocate a game to the Redlands coast in recognition of local Indigenous heritage.
The mighty Straddie Sharks will once again play host to this match, this year in Round 11 against the Central QLD Capras on Saturday 31st of May at 2pm. Entry is free and there will be market stalls, activations for the kids, Seagulls merchandise, and prizes to give away. All stakeholders gathered at the Straddie Sharks to launch our Indigenous recognition match for 2025.
Brett Nutley, representing Redland City Council, was happy to support this event and stated, “This is one of the most important events on our sporting calendar and it’s also an opportunity for us to celebrate the First Nations history and culture of our city. This year marks over a decade since the Seagulls first brought a match to Dunwich, on this beautiful oval behind me, and Council has been a proud sponsor of the event across this time.
As we know, rugby league is one of the most popular sports on the Redlands coast, and it’s a special occasion when we get to host a game of this calibre. These partnerships built through this match, with Yulu Burri Ba, Deadly Choices, Redland City Council and the Seagulls, assist with promoting healthcare access and initiatives for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people around the region. Make sure you mark Saturday 31st of May in your diaries, and come along to this wonderful event.”
David Collins, CEO of Yulu Burri Ba Aboriginal Corporation for Community Health, acknowledged the history of the game, “The first of these games over here started in 2014 and there was a big push from one of our Elders to make it happen. She has sadly passed, so I would like to pay my respects to Aunty Lyn Shipway. We always remember her when we have the Seagulls game over here.
We are encouraging people to come and get their 715 Health Checks. Book into one of our clinics and you can get one of these Seagulls shirts as well. One of the big focuses we have this year is tackling Indigenous smoking, and helping our mob to stop smoking and vaping, as they lead to very unhealthy outcomes.
Make sure you come along on the 31st of May to watch our local team the Wynnum Manly Seagulls against the Central QLD Capras.”
Seagulls CEO Wayne Weekes spoke next to thank all the contributors to the event, “The Seagulls would like to thank everybody that has been on board with this game. It’s something that we are really proud to host each year. It’s been 12 years now, and the big focus has been promoting health across the local community. We’re surrounded by some great people across these organisations, and this event certainly couldn’t happen without them.
We’ve got a new jersey to wear this year, with a great Indigenous design, so thank you to Yulu Burri Ba and Deadly Choices for helping with this design and supporting our event, as well as Redland City Council for your support, Sealink ferries for assisting us with travel, and the Straddie Sharks who are great hosts each year.
We have an addition this year, in that our BMD Premiership women’s team will also come over for an in-house trial match, which will add to the football and the community atmosphere on the day. Again, we are super proud as a club to be involved and thanks to everyone for your contribution.
31st of May is also World No Tobacco Day. A great coincidence that helps to elevate our collective Indigenous health messaging around our game.
This is always a great event for the local community, and a highlight of the Indigenous culture on the Redlands coast. We welcome everyone to come along and be part of the day. Sealink ferries will be operating passenger and vehicle ferries to and from Dunwich and offer great support for this event as well. We encourage everyone on the mainland to come over for the day to cheer on the Seagulls.