M.J. - Future captain material?

[Ripper]

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21789783-5012432,00.html

MICHAEL JOHNSON is determined to leave a legacy at Fremantle. Not just as a player, but as a leader of the club's ever-expanding indigenous ranks.

It is a measure of Johnson's growing maturity that the key defender, once too shy to talk unless spoken to, wants to be a key figure in extending and improving an area in which Fremantle is a league leader.

Just over a fifth of Fremantle's squad is Aboriginal, a reason the AFL chose the Dockers to launch this weekend's indigenous round against St Kilda at Subiaco Oval tonight.


Johnson, 22, is one of six Aborigines representing the Dockers tonight and said he wanted to further the legacy of "The Brothers" when leaders Troy Cook and Jeff Farmer reach the end of their careers.
"Down at the club, we are actually called 'The Brothers', and we all stick together and we know each other's backgrounds and families," Johnson said.
"Being the elder ones, we look up to Cooky and the Wiz (but) their careers are almost ending. We've got Des Headland and Antoni Grover taking over soon and, hopefully, we will see some more Aboriginal players coming through the ranks at Fremantle, to keep the legacy going.
"With the experience they have, and me learning from them, I hope to be able to do exactly the same thing to more Aboriginal players which Fremantle hopefully draft in the next few years."
Johnson's value is easily demonstrated. The athletic defender started last season with just 11 games to his name, but finished it as runner-up in the club's best and fairest award in a year Fremantle became a genuine premiership contender.
It is no coincidence Fremantle started badly this season without Johnson, losing its first three games when he was absent through a contentious four-week suspension for a front-on bump in the NAB Cup. He has averaged 19 disposals, six marks and three tackles in four games since resuming.
Johnson, a 2002 graduate of the Clontarf Football Academy that produced a record seven draftees last year, believes he would have struggled without 'The Brothers'.
"I came from a school where only Aboriginal kids attended, and living with my mum, most of the time I only hang around with Aboriginal kids and people," he said.
"It was really hard for me when I first got down here.
"I was really young, and really shy, but I was lucky enough to have the Jeff Farmers and Troy Cooks there that took me under their wing and looked after me. That made me a far better player, I reckon."
As a child, Johnson idolised Dale Kickett, a five-club player who became a mainstay of the Dockers defence from Fremantle's inception in 1995.
Kickett, now an operations manager of the Clontarf academy in Perth, believes Johnson will be a success at whatever he turns his hand to.
"From what I know of him, basically he is one of those kids who would land on his feet, whether or not he had football," Kickett said.
"He would be a leader in his family, but now he has automatically taken on a bigger role and, whether he likes it or now, he has to become a leader."
Fremantle, at 3-5, needs to defeat St Kilda to get its season back on track and Johnson will play a key role, given he is likely to defend either Nick Riewoldt or Justin Koschitzke.
But he believes the significance of the round will help inspire at least some of his team-mates to an extra level.
"It is a special game for all the indigenous players," he said.
"To be recognised like this is great. I can't wait to get out there and show all the indigenous supporters out there the way Fremantle can play."

That is a great read.

Great wrap for M.J. from Kickity.

 

[dominguez]

Thanks for the link Ripper. Hopefully Johnson continues to improve at a rapid rate, if he does he will be considered among the elite players in the competition within a couple of years.

 

[ImperialPurple]

Fantastic read Rip - thanks. MJ carries himself with such dignity - he is obviously not only a top class player but an outstanding person also. Watch out for his elevation to the "Leadership Group" sooner rather than later.