Glenn James
Encyclopedia
Glenn Robert James OAM
is a former Australian rules football
umpire
in the Victorian Football League
. James umpired the 1982
and 1984
VFL Grand Final
s and is recognised as the only Indigenous Australian to umpire VFL
or AFL
football.
, worked in the Ardmona Cannery in Shepparton
. The young James attended school at Gowrie Street School in Shepparton.
In 1968 James was drafted
into the Australian Army
and spent a year in Vietnam
during the Vietnam War
. James is one of two VFL umpires to have served in Vietnam, the other being goal umpire Trevor Pescud.
in the Picola & District Football League
. After a broken jaw ended his playing career James turned to umpiring.
and 1984
VFL Grand Finals, and was the umpire selected in the Indigenous Team of the Century
.
As an umpire James faced abuse from spectators on the basis of his racial background. In 1978 as a result of the nature of the abuse of James, lawyer Greg Lyons studied the legality of this abuse.
In 1985 James was President of the Victorian Football League Umpires Association.
.
Between 1994 and 1996 James was AFL Assistant Umpires Coach.
degree as well as a Diploma of Technical Teaching. James was a lecturer at Swinburne University for many years.
James currently works for the Worawa Aboriginal College as a student ambassador, providing support for Aboriginal students.
AFL
matches for the National Indigenous Radio Service
. He also is a panellist for the Marngrook Footy Show on NIRS.
, John Sutcliffe and Andrew Coates; and then-current AFL umpires Scott McLaren
, Mathew James and Ray Chamberlain
recorded a song entitled The Man In White.
in Melbourne
as a cultural advisor.
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
is a former Australian rules football
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
umpire
Umpire (Australian rules football)
An umpire is an official in the sport of Australian rules football.-Origins:Unlike many other codes of football, where the official is called a referee, in Australian Football, the officials borrow their title from the game of cricket, which is played on the same types of fields and was an...
in the Victorian Football League
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
. James umpired the 1982
1982 VFL Grand Final
The 1982 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Carlton Football Club and Richmond Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 25 September 1982. It was the 86th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine...
and 1984
1984 VFL Grand Final
The 1984 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Essendon Football Club and Hawthorn Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 29 September 1984. It was the 88th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine...
VFL Grand Final
AFL Grand Final
The AFL Grand Final is an annual Australian rules football match, traditionally held on the final Saturday in September at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia to determine the Australian Football League premiership champions for that year...
s and is recognised as the only Indigenous Australian to umpire VFL
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
or AFL
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
football.
Early life
James was the tenth child in a family of 14. His father, an Indigenous Australian of the Yorta Yorta peopleYorta Yorta people
The Yorta Yorta people are the Indigenous Australians who traditionally lived around the junction of the Goulburn and Murray Rivers in present-day northeast Victoria....
, worked in the Ardmona Cannery in Shepparton
Shepparton, Victoria
Shepparton is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River in the north east of Victoria, Australia approximately north-east of Melbourne. It is the fifth largest city in Victoria, Australia. The estimated population of Shepparton's statistical area is 48,926.It began as a sheep station...
. The young James attended school at Gowrie Street School in Shepparton.
In 1968 James was drafted
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
into the Australian Army
Australian Army
The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of Defence commands the Australian Defence Force , the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army...
and spent a year in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. James is one of two VFL umpires to have served in Vietnam, the other being goal umpire Trevor Pescud.
Playing career
With his brothers, James played for WunghnuWunghnu Football Club
The Wunghnu Football Club, nicknamed the Magpies, was an Australian rules football club. It was playing in the Picola & District Football League until it was forced in 2011 into recess by the VCFL because they were deemed to be uncompetitive...
in the Picola & District Football League
Picola & District Football League
The Picola & District Football Netball League is an Australian rules football league affiliated with the Victorian Country Football League.The league covers a large area of northern Victoria and southern New South Wales from Shepparton in the south to Jerilderie in the north and consists of teams...
. After a broken jaw ended his playing career James turned to umpiring.
Umpiring career
After starting his umpiring career in country football, James umpired 166 VFL matches between 1977 and 1985 including the 19821982 VFL Grand Final
The 1982 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Carlton Football Club and Richmond Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 25 September 1982. It was the 86th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine...
and 1984
1984 VFL Grand Final
The 1984 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Essendon Football Club and Hawthorn Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 29 September 1984. It was the 88th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine...
VFL Grand Finals, and was the umpire selected in the Indigenous Team of the Century
Indigenous Team of the Century
The Indigenous Team of the Century was selected to recognise the role of Indigenous Australians in the sport. It was announced in 2005 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the first senior game played by an indigenous player, Fitzroy's Joe Johnson...
.
As an umpire James faced abuse from spectators on the basis of his racial background. In 1978 as a result of the nature of the abuse of James, lawyer Greg Lyons studied the legality of this abuse.
In 1985 James was President of the Victorian Football League Umpires Association.
Umpire coach
Immediately after retiring from VFL umpiring, James was appointed in 1986 as Umpiring Careers Advisor with the Victorian Country Football LeagueVictorian Country Football League
The Victorian Country Football League is the governing body for Australian rules football in Victoria outside of metropolitan Melbourne on behalf of AFL Victoria...
.
Between 1994 and 1996 James was AFL Assistant Umpires Coach.
Teaching
He has a Bachelor of EducationBachelor of Education
A Bachelor of Education is an undergraduate academic degree which qualifies the graduate as a teacher in schools.-North America:...
degree as well as a Diploma of Technical Teaching. James was a lecturer at Swinburne University for many years.
James currently works for the Worawa Aboriginal College as a student ambassador, providing support for Aboriginal students.
Media
James commentatesColor commentator
A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...
AFL
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
matches for the National Indigenous Radio Service
National Indigenous Radio Service
The National Indigenous Radio Service is a satellite program feed available in Australia to community radio stations that are subscribers of the CBAA’s Community Radio Network. The NIRS provides targeted and specialist programming for and by Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander...
. He also is a panellist for the Marngrook Footy Show on NIRS.
Music
In 2008 James with former umpires Peter CameronPeter Cameron (umpire)
Peter Cameron is a former Australian rules football field umpire, who umpired 306 matches between 1977 and 1993 in the Australian Football League, including nineteen finals and three AFL Grand Final appearances. Since completing his umpiring career, he has continued to maintain a public presence...
, John Sutcliffe and Andrew Coates; and then-current AFL umpires Scott McLaren
Scott McLaren
Scott McLaren is an Australian rules football field umpire in the Australian Football League. He has umpired 300 career games in the AFL....
, Mathew James and Ray Chamberlain
Ray Chamberlain
Ray 'Razor' Chamberlain is an Australian rules football field umpire in the Australian Football League.Chamberlain grew up in the ACT and umpired his first Australian rules game as a teenager...
recorded a song entitled The Man In White.
Koori Court
As of 2008 James worked for the Koori CourtKoori Court
A Koori Court is a division of the Magistrate's court in Victoria, Australia, that sentences Indigenous Australians who pleaded guilty. Koori Courts were created in order to allow participation of the Aboriginal community and culture in the legal system, in an attempt to bridge the cultural...
in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
as a cultural advisor.
Honours
- VictorianVictoria (Australia)Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
Aborigine of the Year: 1984
- Life Member of the Victorian Football League Umpires Association: 1984
- Medal of the Order of AustraliaOrder of AustraliaThe Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
: 1987