Home

Mullewa president Mick Wall reflects on administrator of the year gong and looks to future

Reuben CarderMidwest Times
Jamien Papertalk and Linton Merry chair Mick Wall off the field for his 400th game in a file image from 2018.
Camera IconJamien Papertalk and Linton Merry chair Mick Wall off the field for his 400th game in a file image from 2018. Credit: Justine Rowe/Supplied, Justine Rowe

Mick Wall has been around in Mid West footy longer than almost anyone, but he vividly remembers winning the administrator of the year prize at the Geraldton Guardian Mid West Sports Awards in 2005.

That’s partly because it was one of the spells he’s spent as Mullewa president, and his beloved Saints won the premiership that year.

“I’ve done 10 years, I think, all up,” Wall, who is now president again, said. “I’d sort of do two or three years, I’d jump in and do it when no one else would.”

The Saints have won two premierships while he was president — 2005 and 2017 — and lost a grand final to Towns in 2006. Brett Del Nero and Terrence Jones were in charge for their 2013 flag.

Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE

Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.

READ NOW

Born in 1964, Wall played during the 2005 season and even took to the field last season to make up numbers.

For Wall it’s not just about wins, but what sport means to the town, and what he sees as a decline in fortunes with local businesses struggling to provide sponsorship, making it tough to hold on to premiership-winning sides when the club does assemble them.

“It lifts the town a bit during footy season,” Wall said.

“We’ve got some good kids coming through, we need something for them to do, or more families will leave our town so the kids can play footy somewhere else. It’s not an easy job as president.

“We’ve (the club committee) all got a pretty big workload, we’ve only got five or six people who do everything, there’s a lack of volunteers and it’s hard to get sponsorship these days. But the best part is keeping a team on the track. That’s the main reason I’m doing it.”

While things might not be the same as the glory days of the 1980s and 90s when Mullewa won three premierships in five years, Wall and the club keep plugging away, and they marked another milestone last season.

A Mullewa women’s side turned out for the first time, with Cynthia Comeagain and Denise Garlett, men’s coach Charlie Comeagain’s granddaughter and partner, as captain and coach.

“That was a bit of a boost to us,” Wall said.

Nominations for this year’s awards close on November 7.

Nomination forms are available at www.mwsf.org.au and can be submitted on the website.

Get the latest news from thewest.com.au in your inbox.

Sign up for our emails