The Boy from Boomerang Crescent by Eddie Betts - Book
Itâs a long, hard road from the Nullarbor to the MCG.
How does a self-described âskinny Aboriginal kidâ overcome a legacy of a family tragedy to become an AFL legend? One thingâs for sure: itâs not easy. But then, thereâs always been something special about Eddie Betts.
Betts grew up in Port Lincoln and Kalgoorlie, in environments where the destructive legacies of colonialism â racism, police targeting of Aboriginal people, drug and alcohol misuse, family violence â were sadly normalised. His childhood was defined by family closeness as well as family strife, plus wonderful freedom that he and his cousins exploited to the full â for better and for worse.
When he made the decision to take his talents across the Nullarbor to Melbourne to chase his footballing dreams â homesickness be damned â everything changed. Over the ensuing years, Betts became a true giant of the sport: 350-plus games, 600-plus goals, multiple All-Australian nods and Goal of the Year awards, and league-wide popularity rarely seen in the hyper-tribal AFL.
Along the way, he battled his demons before his turbulent youth settled into responsible maturity. Today, the man the Melbourne tabloids once dubbed âbad boy Bettsâ is a dedicated husband and father, a respected community leader and an increasingly outspoken social activist.
Sometimes funny, sometimes tragic and always honest â often laceratingly so â The Boy from Boomerang Crescent is the inspirational life story of a champion, in his own words. Whether heâs narrating one of his trademark gravity-defying goals from the pocket, the discrimination heâs faced as an Aboriginal person or the birth of his first child, Bettsâs voice intelligent, soulful, unpretentious rings through on every page.
The very human story behind the plaudits is one that will surprise, move and inspire.
- Number of Pages: 304 pages
- Book Cover: Hardback
