Tiger Houli spreads AFL messageMelissa Woods
wwos.ninemsn.com.au
Wed Jun 27 2012Richmond defender and AFL multi-cultural ambassador Bachar Houli has celebrated his Tigers re-signing by spending the day with Islamic school kids playing for a cup named in his honour.
The first practising Muslim to line up in the AFL, Houli organised the round-robin tournament for eight Islamic schools in Melbourne, and even led them in prayer at the ground.
A fringe player at Essendon before signing with the Tigers in the 2010 pre-season draft, Houli has proved an excellent recruit and was rewarded with a new two-year deal.
Houli said he loved playing at the Tigers under coach Damien Hardwick, who umpired the final of his tournament.
"I came to the club aiming to play as many games as possible, and to play every game so far is great for myself and my family," 24-year-old Houli said.
"To be secure for another two years is quite rewarding."
Houli used to sneak out of home to play football before his family accepted his love of the game.
He said soccer was predominantly the Islamic students' main game but they were embracing Australian Rules.
He hoped to turn the one-day event into a formal competition among the schools.
Before this weekend's multi-cultural round, Hardwick described hard-working Houli as a "fantastic individual".
"To learn about Bachar's religion and what he does to prepare for AFL football with regard to that.
"He's a wonderful young man who's going to do great things for this game."
And he had another reason for wanting Houli to stay a Tiger.
"The bonus is his mum makes fantastic tabouli which is dropped off at the Hardwick household once a fortnight which is great."
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