The Tamworth Crows are about more than just rugby league. While the Koori Knockout is a highlight on the Indigenous sporting calendar, the Club has gone beyond the Knockout – and beyond rugby league – to support and uplift their community.
The football club kicked off in 2023 when local Jake Morris and ex-Canberra Raiders player Tommy Learoyd-Lahrs saw a chance not only to have Tamworth represented at the annual Koori Knockout, but also to bring the community together.
From the start the idea was to build a sense of belonging and pride while helping the local community tackle important problems.
“We saw the rise in youth crime and a few other issues that were happening around town like housing and job struggles and we discovered we were able to help a few people through the connections we had and networking with everyone,” said Jake, President of the Tamworth Crows.
“For me being here for so long and growing up in Tamworth there was a really good authenticity to the community, it felt like a community, and I want to resurrect that.
“Obviously football is a good carrot to dangle. A lot of our sponsors are plumbers or roofers or electricians and by getting them involved with the Club we’ve been able to connect a lot of our young people to them. Last year a couple got apprenticeships from those connections.
“The Koori Knockout is one weekend a year, so we have seven months to hold events to help our community around things like financial literacy, employment, housing, all sorts of things, and we encourage our around 180 players to get along to the events and encourage others to come along,” he said.
“We want to be a shoulder for the community to rely on – we’re about so much more than just rugby league.”
Whitehaven has been a major sponsor of the Club from the start, providing financial support to assist with the Koori Knockout weekend and their community initiatives beyond the footy field.
Bob Sutherland, Senior Manager – Indigenous Engagement at Whitehaven, said he can see the significant benefits for Indigenous people through the partnership.
“Our partnership with the Tamworth Crows is about more than football. It’s about creating opportunities, building cultural pride, and supporting initiatives that make a real difference in the community.
“We’re proud to stand alongside the Crows as they continue to grow and deliver positive outcomes for Indigenous people in the region.”
The 2025 Koori Knockout was held in the Crows backyard at Tamworth – despite the results not going their way they showed heart and fight and are looking forward to an even bigger 2026.
No matter what the results are, the Club won’t falter from helping their own.
“We won’t be able to solve all the problems as a club, but we just try to help as many as we can and go from there, one at a time,” Jake said.
Image credit: Danny Dalton
