PORT ADELAIDE defender Alipate Carlile hosted almost 200 children at Alberton Oval for the club’s recent Multicultural Gala Day as part of the ‘Power of One’ program.

The six-week program is run by Power Community Ltd in conjunction with the SANFL and introduces new arrivals from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds to Australian Football.

Power of One involves four school visits where children learn the basics of the game, messages around tolerance, embracing difference and healthy living.

Moving from Fiji to Wangaratta in country Victoria at an early age and going on to become one of Port Adelaide’s most important defenders, Carlile’s story is one of many in the modern AFL that is a beacon for efforts to embrace multiculturalism in the game.

The 27-year-old regularly speaks of the challenges migrants face, but also knows of the many opportunities participation in Australian life and culture.

“We use football as a tool to help the children learn English, integrate and feel as though they are ‘one’ with their fellow students, regardless of cultural or linguistic differences,” Carlile told portadelaidefc.com.au.

“I think, above all, it’s important that kids embrace all that Australia has to offer without forgetting where they come from.”

It’s for these reasons program participants are encouraged to share each other’s cultures on the Gala Day by talking about unique cultural dishes, festivals, languages and religious practices.

And of course, the opportunity to play football was one of the most popular events on the day.

Carlile was joined by SANFL Multicultural Ambassador Emmanuel Irra – a South Adelaide player who fled war-torn Uganda with his family and arrived as a refugee in Australia with no English.

Like Carlile, Irra knows all too well the struggles that many migrant children face, especially those who arrive in Australia as refugees like him.

Both players agree that it was Australian Football that helped them make friends, have fun and learn Australia’s cultural institutions, while sharing the many cultures of the players who participate in club life.

In addition to playing 9-a-side football games at the Gala Day, ‘Power of One’ participants made ever-popular loom bracelets in the colours of their national flags.

They also tried Zumba for the first time - a South American style of dance which encourages fun, fitness and plenty of cheering – before completing their visit to Alberton with a tour of the club’s headquarters and another Australian cultural institution – a barbecue lunch.

Week six of the program will take place at the Adelaide Oval on Sunday 20 July when Port Adelaide hosts Melbourne during AFL Multicultural Round.

The ‘Many Cultures One Game’ tagline will once again be embraced, with a range of on-ground activations taking place including a series of 9-a-side games played by ‘Power of One’ program participants.

The unique opportunity for the children to play football on a national stage gives the industry a chance to showcase the diversity of Australia and the inclusiveness prevalent in all levels of the game.

For the children it will be an opportunity to experience something that is quintessentially Australian and continue building their confidence, resilience and understanding of what it means to be part of their diverse new home.

Michelle Cioffi is Power Community Ltd’s Diversity Programs Manager