Essendon Football Club is pleased to announce Matthew Whelan has joined the club as Aboriginal Programs and Welfare Coordinator.

Whelan will work closely with the club’s Community and Football Departments as part of the newly created role.

Originally from Darwin, Whelan forged a successful AFL career with Melbourne where he played 150 games before joining AFL SportsReady as an Indigenous Mentor.

Whelan said he was looking forward to building on the great work Essendon continues to do within the Indigenous community.

“I am very excited about the new role as it is a club with a very proud and rich history of work within the Indigenous community,” Whelan said.

“It will be important in my new role that I continue to build on the strong foundations set by past Essendon champion Michael Long.”

The role will see Whelan work with the club’s Indigenous and non-Indigenous players as well as run the successful Bombers’ Bright Futures program.

In a further show of support for the club’s Indigenous programs, Essendon will continue its financial support of the Tiwi Bombers and Wadeye Magic in the 2014/15 season.

Chairman of the Tiwi Bombers Mick Burns said the financial contribution was significant to continuing the football development in the remote region.

“The Community Football Grant provided by Essendon Football Club is of great benefit to our club,” Burns said.

“The support from Essendon allows us to provide support to the whole Tiwi Islandcommunity, and fulfill our aim of addressing major social problems including Youth Suicide in the community through football.”

Head of Community Cameron Britt said both announcements showed the importance the club placed in its Indignous welfare strategy.

“The club is very excited to announce the appointment of Matthew as well as the continued support of both the Tiwi Bombers and Wadeye Magic Football Club’s,” Britt said.

“Matthew comes on board in a newly created role that will assist us deliver on a number of key outcomes for our players, staff and the broader community.

“The extensive mentoring and welfare experience Matt brings to the role as well as his knowledge of the AFL industry will prove vital in this role.”