I was fascinated to be involved with the UN Mission in Sudan, in the lead up to the decision to split Sudan in 2 which ran concurrently with trying to broker peace in the Darfur war. In spite of all the work that was done by UNMIS to prepare some basic infrastructure for the new country and the fervent hopes that the new South Sudan would solve the issues of the dominance of the north over the disparate ethnicity down in the south which had caused a long running civil war, I am massively disappointed at the outcome. Essentially civil war erupted within South Sudan as soon as the referendum votes were counted.
Luamon has a chance which would be beyond belief to those left in war torn, barbaric South Sudan and although its hard to predict the future for anyone, I sense he and his family are far better off here than back in South Sudan which is one of the poorest countries in the world.
My greatest impression of the people I met there was the sense of community and generosity, and the way the women dressed. One day as I left the UN compound to go to the Kadugli airport ( such as it is ) I saw a group of about 10 outrageously tall women at the gate, with the most outrageously colorful clothing draped about them. I flew back to Khartoum that day and I have to say that Khartoum is one of my least favourite places on Earth I would want to spend any time.
Geez is there a tonne of pollen on this train on the way to work. Eyes are getting watery.
What a story. This is a must watch for my 11 year old whoās dreamt of playing AFL since as long as he remembers. You simply have to put in the work, regardless of the adversity.
Wonderful human story not just on forty but of what community connection does for families.
His mum would be so proud of not only her little boy but her husband and daughter for the manner in which they support each other.
Have a feeling this is only the begging of his incredible journey.
Iāll be watching the Cats fella on his journey too. Great out for him as well.
Iām another who had just watched The Smokey and think itās ā ā ā ā ā ā ā awesome we got this kid.
To whatever extent being grounded, kind, well-supported by family but overall driven helps elite athletes reach their potential, thatās all in the bag for Luamon (and therefore for the EFC).
Iām bullish on his highlights (work in traffic, side step, cool headed, forward/diagonal movement) too, but you know heāll be a great clubman in the B Scott era.
Heās raw but I think he has shown some promising signs so far. I like his scope as a small defender that can shut down but possibly offer a bit of run out of d50
How is this young guy tracking? I wasnāt able to watch the first VFL game and only saw the first half of the second one. He looks to have a bit of speed and he found a decent amount of ball in the bit I saw. A quick, small defender is high on the priority list, but is this one for 2025 and beyond?
I think 2025 and beyond is fair. I really hope we donāt take the flair out of his game, though. He looks someone who wants to make things happen. We need that.
Watching the replay of yesterdayās game, I was impressed with this young man. Very composed, good reader of the ball, intercepts well, gets to good positions, runs consistently, provides linkup plays, and his disposal was mostly tidy and his decision making solid.
Yep he was the same at under 18 level, no surprises. He has good hands and the fast twitch fibres though. I also felt there were a number of half backs ahead of lual that didnāt get drafted, however, the Sudanese boys have massive upside, which a lot of, if not the majority of drafting is done on that basis.
