By Peter Douglas
WARBURTON-Millgrove footballer and father, Brendon Murphy, is leading the charge in the region to raise awareness for domestic violence.
After coordinating a short-film clip on the issue, which includes key messages from local footballers, his efforts have received huge support through social media.
His story will also feature tonight (Thursday, 10 September) on ABC television.
The project has received full support from the Yarra Valley Mountain District Football Netball League, which is encouraging the public to share the video with the hashtag #heroesforzeroes.
Mr Murphy said he felt compelled to raise awareness.
“I was watching a program about a woman who had been killed in a domestic violence incident,” he said.
“I was sitting there with my one-year-old daughter and I became emotional.
“It played on my mind for a while, so I decided to do something about it.”
Mr Murphy called on the help of two friends, who are both involved with television and film-making.
With their assistance, the trio wrote, shot and edited the one-minute clip, which features eight clubs and nine players.
Initially, they hoped it would receive about 1000 views, but those expectations were quickly exceeded.
As of today, the clip has enjoyed almost 87,000 views on Facebook.
Mr Murphy hoped the clip will leave an impression.
“I believe education is the key,” he said.
“This is a great target audience because football clubs span such a range of ages.
“A president is usually in their sixties, but there are also junior players and under-18s.
“It’s great to get the message out there.”
Mr Murphy’s ultimate aim is for the clip to be recreated, word for word, among other football/netball leagues.
So far, AFL Tasmania has already inquired about doing the same.
“That alone has made it worthwhile,” he said.
The clip can be viewed on the Mail’s Facebook page, or below.
