INTRODUCTION: Hi, I’m Jack Riewoldt from Richmond Football Club. With the AFL 2020 season starting up later this month, all eyes are going to be on our midfielder Marlion Pickett. This time last year he’d all but given up his dream of playing footy at the highest level. He had age, injury and a chequered past against him. But in an extraordinary turn of events, he got his chance to play his first ever AFL game on the day of the Grand Final and made history…This is Marlion Pickett’s story.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: People in Melbourne, I wouldn’t say they are over the top, but their love for football is yeah something else.

SYDNEY STACK: On the Friday, the day before the Grand Final, it was me and Marlon sitting in the truck together. And I had little Levi, Marlion’s son, in my lap and he has his daughter. And the media just swarmed us and wanted to talk to Marlion.

REPORTER: You’re a big game player, aren’t you?

MARLION: Some people say that, yes.

SYDNEY STACK: And yeah, we just loved it. It was surreal. It was just unbelievable

(ABC NEWS)

REPORTER: Marlion Pickett is embracing the hype ahead of making his debut in front of 100, 000 people

ANTHONY VAN DER WIELEN, SOUTH FREMANTLE BOARD MEMBER: And it was just the feel-good story of the 2019 AFL Grand Final, and that was that was before we knew that he was going to play the sort of game that he played.

COMMENTATOR: Marlion Pickett’s first game. That would send goose bumps down his spine.

SYDNEY STACK: I just knew he belonged out there and it was his day and it was his day. And it was all Marlion-Marlion-Marlion.

COMMENTATOR: Pickett, that was a beautiful move. What about that.

SYDNEY STACK: I was so proud of this bloke and because I got to know him and his background and what he's been through.

COMMENTATOR: Pickett, he’s a first gamer.

DUSTIN MARTIN: People make mistakes in life and you can change and turn your life around. Life’s all about getting second chances and become a better person.

COMMENTATOR: If he kicks this, this will be one of the great balls in grand final history.

DAMIEN HARDWICK, RICHMOND COACH: Marlin’s having a shot at goal and the murmur that is going around, this is like a fairy tale. This couldn’t happen could it. We couldn’t have a kid that’s been in jail, 27 years of age, he could not possibly kick a goal. It’s an incredible story; hard to believe it happened really.

COMMENTATOR: A debutante about to put the dagger in the heart on grand final day.

TITLE: Making his Mark

MARLION PICKETT: I've always been a good runner, every school I went to. When there was a competition that If I didn't come first then it made me push even harder the next year.

JACK RIEWOLDT: It's beautiful watching him run. There's no sound. It is so quick and it’s not just straight, it's any direction blind turns. He's a nearly like a ballet dancer in the way he moves.

COMMENTATOR: And the Tigers land a counterpunch. Pickett trying to spin through

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: When people watch Marlion playing football, that’s all they see. Not behind closed doors. A lot going on with our family. And yeah there’s was quite a lot of struggles and yeah.

MARLION PICKETT: Oh, being brought up in Perth going out into the cities or going out late night shopping centres – Perth is hard growing up especially a lot of people go out looking for trouble and why not so you can’t really go out and enjoy your night.

MARLION PICKETT: Um, probably. I'm not quite sure I can only I remember when I was 15 yeah thought I was big enough to hit out with the older brothers and why not. So then yeah. We got in trouble. The brothers got into trouble, got into fighting and that, got charged for grievous bodily harms.

CAPTION: In 2007 Marlion was sentenced to six months in juvenile detention. He was 15 years old.

MARLION PICKETT: A couple of months after I got released from the juvenile detention centre then I met Jess. Jess was the first um girl that I met properly and then I dunno — there was a strong connection from probably when I first met her.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: He was a very shy person. Also, I myself was very shy. I think he was more into me than what I was into him, but I think that’s what brought me to liking Marlion, yeah. He wasn’t that much into football at the time. He was more in trouble.

LEEKESIA NANNUP, JESS’S ELDEST SISTER: Jessica was 15 years of age. She ran away. She found a found a boyfriend — it was Marlion. Me and my mom and sister went to get her, and she came back with us. A few days later, she's gone missing again.

TYSON PICKETT, YOUNGER BROTHER: Our parents went through a bit of stuff you know trying to control all of us kids in the city. It was a bit hard for them, so they moved up – they decided to move to York to keep us all out of trouble.

MARLION PICKETT: My mum made hard with Jess to try and accept her but ah I wasn’t taking none of that and yeah so then she had no choice. It was either Jess come with us or or me and Jess heading our own way

LEEKESIA NANNUP, JESS’S ELDEST SISTER: At that time, I didn't want to acknowledge Marlion. because I was, I was upset with them both. Yeah, I thought that was making all the wrong decisions.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: I was 17 when I first found out I was pregnant. It was kind of a shock to me just because how young I was. And that changed everything.

MARLION PICKETT: I had to support them then I tried to look for work but work didn’t end up finding me so I had to find another way to support them and yeah I was 18 at the time so I just partying and drinking and bit of drugs, and ended up getting into crime.

MARLION PICKETT: At the time I was thinking if I break into a shop it was safer for the family yeah than sell drugs from home with the kids and that.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: I knew Marlion was doing robberies and I did not feel that all right with it because I knew it would come to end one day.

MARLION PICKETT: I was laying in bed with Jess one morning and I heard a knock on the door then um yeah when I looked out the door and who was standing there – it was the police.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: Two weeks after Marlion was arrested, I found out I was pregnant for our second child, Latrelle. And I knew from there that things were going to be really difficult for myself.

CAPTION: In 2010 Marlion Pickett was sentenced to two and a half years.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: When I went to visit Marlion with the children, it was good for the hour, but after it was time to say goodbye, it was pretty hard, just seeing my son cry for his dad.

MARLION PICKETT: Yeah, oh a tear rolled down the side of my face so I looked back once and that was about it just kept walking.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: A few days down the track, he said not to visit him as often, only because he didn’t want Junior to hurt as much.

MARLION PICKETT: Yeah just probably the hardest thing I had to do. Sometimes I asked Jess why didn’t she leave me but then she said she didn’t want the kids will grow up without a father.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: I've seen my mother, my father, my brother being in and out of prison, most their life.

CAPTION:

Sixteen months into his sentence, Marlion Pickett was transferred to a minimum- security prison.

KELRICK MARTIN, DOCUMENTARY MAKER: In 2011, Wooroloo Prison Farm joined forces with local football club over in Western Australia taking prisoners outside of prison walls to play in the local football league.

PRISONER COACH: It’s up to you at the end of the day. Like I said I don’t like to lose. You got to use teammate. Don’t try to take on the world.

KELRICK MARTIN, DOCUMENTARY MAKER: I was approached to come on board and document the program for the ABC.

PRISONER COACH: Have a bit more conviction.

KELRICK MARTIN, DOCUMENTARY MAKER: Speaking to Marlion and interviewing him, I didn't think that there was too much to this young man. He was very quiet. He was very humble. He didn't really have a lot to say.

(Interview)

MARLION PICKETT: Love the football. Good feeling,

INTERVIEWER: You’re good at it?

MARLION PICKETT: Yeah, well. It’s alright.

(Ends)

KELRICK MARTIN, DOCUMENTARY MAKER: But once we got outside of prison walls, once we saw them running around on the field, he was incredible. I mean, he really let his skills do the talking.

PRISONER COACH: Well done Marlion!

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: Watching Marlion play football was pretty surprising because I didn’t really know how talented he was.

KELRICK MARTIN, DOCUMENTARY MAKER: And everyone on the team was adamant to me at least that he was absolutely going to be an incredible AFL star on the outside. Once he'd completed his sentence

MARLION PICKETT: I didn’t really have no idea about where my footy career would lead me at the time. I was fully just worried about focusing on getting through my sentence and what I had to do

KELRICK MARTIN, DOCUMENTARY MAKER: I think in their first game, they beat their first team by like 150 points. It was absolutely ridiculous. As the season progressed, you could definitely see that these guys were on a fast track to reaching the finals and potentially a grand final victory. Unfortunately, there was one particular incident that threw a real big spanner in the works.

MARLION PICKETT: At that time, I had enough of minimum security, there wasn’t the right structure around me, I had twelve months left.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: There’s two of them.

MARLION PICKETT: There’s a bit too much freedom where I didn’t want freedom, I just wanted more structure where time flew flew instead of dragging along. So, I asked to get moved from Wooroloo but that didn't happen. So, then the only way I got to move is if I got charged.

MARLION PICKETT: In prison you always can get drugs in prison it doesn’t matter where you are. In Wooroloo, you get stuff just chucked straight over the fence yeah. If they catch you, you’re heading back to Acacia Prison –medium security. So, at that time yeah, I talk to the right people and I ended up getting some marihuana and I was caught out of bounds. From that point I knew I was going back to Acacia prison.

KELRICK MARTIN, DOCUMENTARY MAKER: Very different routines there. We're talking about much stricter rules and regulations, a lot less freedoms. Concrete walls, barbed wire, all of that sort of stuff. That was the real reason why it was such a shock. He was the one that had the most to lose. And as a result, they lost in the finals and they fell out of the comp.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: I had doubts for Marlion if he was to change or not but when he got out in 2013, the first week, he went into South Fremantle Football Club and asked if he was allowed to play with them.

ANTHONY VAN DER WIELEN, MARLION’S MANAGER: Marlion would have been around about 21. It asked some questions of us as a football club when we were prepared to take a player straight out of prison. There's always a little bit of fear that comes with that. So, a lot of people would get out of the way when Marlon was going towards the ball.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: Food, you want some lunch?

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: In 2015, myself and Marlion moved into our very first home just outside of Fremantle where we had our first daughter, Shaniquae.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: That’s your one. Levi’s. Sit down there.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: The following year, we had our youngest son, Levi.

MARLION PICKETT: You come and watch dad play football. You have a headache do ya?

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: Since Marlion was younger, he told me that was his dream to become an AFL player and play for the big league.

CLINT WHEELDON, FOOTBALL COMMENTATOR: The pinnacle of Australian football is the AFL. It's the big stage. But in the way that the AFL and indeed most sports, they're drafting system work, you get picked up when you're 18 or 19. So at 24, he's almost ancient.

BLAIR HARTLEY, RICHMOND PLAYER MANAGER: Still trying to build our team and we certainly looked at him closely. But we probably weren't quite ready for Marlion at that point in time, He’s got to be able to survive and not just survive, he’s got to thrive in our environment and prosper.

(ABC NEWS)

IAN HENDERSON: Richmond captain Trent Cotchin has defended coach Damien Hardwick after another embarrassing loss at the weekend.

DAMIEN HARDWICK, RICHMOND COACH: 2016 was tough as years I've ever had, you know, emotionally, physically. And it just became a really, really crappy place to be, the Richmond Footy Club.

(ABC NEWS)

REPORTER: Kicking their lowest score in 50 years.

DAMIEN HARDWICK, RICHMOND COACH: There's no way I’m bringing in a player that's been incarcerated for a period of time. I became a shocking coach. I became I thought or I became I thought unapproachable to my playing group. A W.A. Indigenous boy that has experienced what he has done- I would've just thought this is all too hard. There's no way this is gonna work.

MARLION PICKETT: I met with several different clubs. West Coast, Fremantle, Gold Coast, Essendon, St Kilda, but I got overlooked every year. Probably just, I don’t know, made me more angrier that they’re still worried about my past.

MARLION PICKETT: Well, one night we went out. Then I don’t know who the other fellow he called me nigger or bung or something like that and went to take a swing at me so I then stepped back and I hit him. So, then I was going to court for that. But at the end of it, it got dismissed and dropped. That’s when I stopped going out. And now it’s just focussing on my kids, my partner, and doing the best I can for them

MARLION PICKETT: Do you want to put your foot in here and bury your foot?

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: In 2018, Marlion had doubts that he would ever make the AFL side but, I encouraged him a lot to just stick to it.

WAFL COMMENTATOR: Big fly by Pickett. Highly rated. AFL clubs watching his finals campaign as well. A dangerous position. Pickett on the goal line almost. It’s three straight goals for South Fremantle.

ANTHONY VAN DER WIELEN, MARLION’S MANAGER: His football season in 2018 and was phenomenal. He went on to win our best and fairest that particular season. He had developed great leadership. He he was not only a leader of the blackfellas, the Aboriginal players in our football club. He was a leader of everybody. And he was somebody that if you if you played alongside Marlion Pickett, you know, we felt our players walked a little bit taller. We felt that they felt protected. They felt a little bit stronger and a little bit bolder to play alongside Marlon.

WAFL COMMENTATOR: Pickett- What a mark. Extraordinary. Well, any talent scouts watching.

BLAIR HARTLEY, RICHMOND PLAYER MANAGER: He’s always had the aerial power. He’s always been so brave in the air.

BLAIR HARTLEY, RICHMOND PLAYER MANAGER: We interviewed him a couple of times and from that the interest grew.

BLAIR HARTLEY, RICHMOND PLAYER MANAGER: So, pause it now. He already knows what’s behind him.

MATT CLARKE: The only fears we probably had in maybe in selecting Marlion was we’re taking a 27-year-old guy with a partner and four young children and relocating the from one side of the country to the other.

MATT CLARKE: Such an unselfish player too. Brings other people into the game.

DAMIEN HARDWICK, RICHMOND COACH: Sometimes you learn the greatest lessons of your life in your darkest times certainly happened to me. Might have happened to Marlion as well.

REPORTER: 37 years of disappointment purged with a deafening roar.

CLINT WHEELDON, FOOTBALL COMMENTATOR By now, Damien Hardwick had completely changed the way you went about things. He embraced people from all sorts of different backgrounds, including troubled ones.

DAMIEN HARDWICK, RICHMOND COACH: And that's the significant change we don't all have to fit the same box, we can let people be who they are, we can embrace them for the person that they are.

CLINT WHEELDON, FOOTBALL COMMENTATOR: And then for the first time in decades, the AFL decides to have a mid-season draft. But the week before that mid-season draft, Marlion Pickett breaks his finger for a second time.

FEMALE PRESENTER: What have you gone for at pick 13 for the Tigers?

MATT CLARKE: Yeah, we’ve selected Marlion Pickett from the South Fremantle football club.

MAN: Wow. Surprised to hear. He’s broken his finger on the weekend Matt, we think its potentially a 6/8-week recovery.

MATT CLARKE: Yes, I don’t think there’s any concern for us about the finger. Being a long- term selection we think it’s an opportunity to get Marlion in now.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: I was cooking dinner at home. The draft pick was on. We were surprised they called his name. Yeah, he was shocked. I was surprised. I actually ran out the house and started shouting. He was quiet. Yeah. Scratching his head. Walk around the house and didn’t know what to do.

(NEWS)

REPORTER: Footy fans love a good redemption story and this father of four is one of the best.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: I just let him do what he had to do until he found a house over here for us in Melbourne

SYDNEY STACK: Marlion was in rehab at the time because he had a buggered finger. And as soon as he started training full time with us and was in the main training with us, and he just started to tear it up and showcase his talent and his skill.

CLINT WHEELDON, FOOTBALL COMMENTATOR: Pickets on the verge of being peaked in Richmond's VFL team, that's the second- tier competition. And then all of a sudden, he's needed back home in Perth.

BLAIR HARTLEY, RICHMOND PLAYER MANAGER: Remember it was late on a Friday. I got a phone call from Marlin, and he told me, unfortunately, that Jesse's brother passed away Marlon was clearly quite upset

MARLION PICKETT: When I first got locked up, Sam was already in the prison waiting for me to move into his cell. So he already had that organised. Then as the years went by, we got closer.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: The day after my brother Sam’s funeral, myself, my second youngest sister, Hannah, my four children, and Marlion, moved to Melbourne, the official move.

MARLION PICKETT: Come on, you’re going to wash your hands. No more textas for you. I think you’ve had enough.

HANNAH, JESS’S YOUNGER SISTER: Jess She's such a strong person, like. It's hard to see what's going on in her because she just takes it in and goes on with life, like she doesn't fuss about it.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: Me and Marlion, Levi and Shaniqua are camped in this room. Sometimes it’s a bit much with both the children.

DAMIEN HARDWICK, RICHMOND COACH: Okay so same sort of thing. Let’s do it fast, I want you to do the same play just do it quicker.

JACK RIEWOLDT, RICHMOND PLAYER: When September rolls around. We were lucky enough as a club to have sides in both finals competitions. And Marlon was playing VFL at the time

CLINT WHEELDON, FOOTBALL COMMENTATOR: What happens, though, is Marlion Pickett has such a performance in the VFL, he wins the Norm Goss medal as best on ground. He was nothing short of outstanding. Would he be able to force his way into the AFL grand final sign and to become the first player since 1952 to make his debut in the biggest game of all?

JACK RIEWOLDT, RICHMOND PLAYER: I think the hype started on in the locker room, conversations started to happen, It's the name that kept coming. Well, what about Marlion? Why not Marlion?

DAMIEN HARDWICK, RICHMOND COACH: So, for example when that other defender comes down it pulls off Marlion and Marlion can come round…

DAMIEN HARDWICK, RICHMOND COACH: Thursday comes around and we thought, well, listen, this kid's crossed every bridge we've asked him to cross; his life has challenged him in many ways that none of this would have any idea of what he's been through. And he's just taken everything in his stride.

DAMIEN HARDWICK, RICHMOND COACH: So, we brought him in with Captain Trent Cotchin and Dustin Martin, who had a bit of a relationship with as well. And we told he was going to play.

(Damien to Marlion in management room, home video)

DAMIEN HARDWICK, RICHMOND COACH: We’ve put you in as 22. You’re going to play your first game brother. Not a bad game to play. Congratulations.

DUSTIN MARTIN: He was pretty shocked. He took a big, deep breath. And it was a really special moment. And I'm glad I was a part of it.

CLINT WHEELDON, FOOTBALL COMMENTATOR: So come the big day. Marlion Pickett understandably starts on the bench, but from when he got on the field, he shone from the outset.

COMMENTATOR: There’s Pickett, oh what about that! A full 360 in slow motion!

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: Everyone was like cheering, and myself, and his manager, and my cousin were more or less like, “Finally, there he is. There, that’s the Marlion we know.”

COMMENTATOR: This man has played a great game, Pickett as well.

MARLION PICKETT: In the third quarter it was 60 at 12 when I kicked the ball to Dusty Martin.

COMMENTATOR: Pickett, Pickett, take a bow, you have been superb.

DUSTY MARTIN: And I was kind of walking back and I just happened to look in board and I seen him out of the corner of my eye. I kind of just gave a little no little nod and just kicked it to him

COMMENTATOR: Gave it to the man who set it up for him.

MARLION PICKETT: At that point, I was thinking I’m not missing this my first shot at goal.

COMMENTATOR: If he kicks this, this will be one of the great balls in Grand Final history. A debutante!

JACK RIEWOLDT, RICHMOND PLAYER: So, Marlion's coming at me. The goals are directly over the top, so I’m right in the middle of the goals, and he kicks it. And you just know this thing is sailing through so I’m watching it go over my head like that, I think everyone starts charging in.

DUSTY MARTIN: All of us were so proud, so emotional. It was put us put us the biggest lead I think we've been all day.

COMMENTATOR: The Tigers are Premiers for the 12th time in their history.

MARLION PICKETT: Some people say what’s happened to me is a fairytale, but if you’re looking for a change and a better life then it’s up to you if you want to change it.

PRISON GUARD: Your names please.

ANTHONY VAN DER WIELEN: Anthony Van Der Wielen

MARLION PICKETT: And Marlion Pickett.

MARLION PICKETT: If I didn’t go to prison when I did, I probably wouldn’t have learnt yeah what was wrong and what was right.

DEPUTY COMMISSIONER: How does it feel to be back out here.

MARLION PICKETT: Not liking it coming back. It’s not a nice place to be away from your family

MARLION PICKETT: When my footy career’s over I would like to mentor, teaches kids, doesn’t matter what kind of kids they are just try to show them there is a better life than jail and prison so, yeah, try to help them get by and to know that I’m always there if they need me so.

MARLION PICKETT: When you’re out don’t give them no reason to try and do that stuff you know.

MARLION PICKETT: There are a lot of Indigenous families out there where a lot of family are in and out of prison for their lifetime. Not just my family, it’s a lot of Indigenous people.

MARLION PICKETT: Stay out of trouble do everything you can to give yourself the best opportunity.

MARLION PICKETT: If had someone I look up to had come in and visited me when I was in here, things might have been different. They could have helped me to get somewhere I wanted to be a bit earlier and probably be there for me.

MARLION PICKETT: You just got to learn from your mistakes. Try something different.

DEPUTY COMMISSIONER: It’s been fantastic having you come in here again. Certainly looking forward to catching up with you again, moving into the future.

DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT MARK MCDONNELL, BANKSIA HILL: We'd be happy to have Marlion involved in any capacity. The relationship is there and we're happy to sort of continue to foster it and make it become as productive as possible.

MARLION PICKETT: Well, it was never easy for Jess, but she’s been a rock to my footy so far in supporting me so over the Christmas break we’ll head back so she can enjoy with her family.

JESS NANNUP, PARTNER: I couldn’t imagine my life without Marlion just yeah. I would say the backbone.

LEEKESIA NANNUP, JESSICA’S ELDEST SISTER I wouldn't have thought that they would have come this far. Yeah. I'm really happy and proud of them.

MARLION PICKETT: It’s my birthday today. I’m 28. So yeah, they say it’s prime time. So, I’m feeling fit.

ANTHONY VAN DER WIELEN, SOUTH FREMANTLE BOARD MEMBER: The pressure is huge now. But for those of us that know Marlion Pickett, he eats pressure for breakfast. He, you know, strives and thrives on that kind of pressure.

KELRICK MARTIN, FILM MAKER: There could be an argument to say that he's a bit of a one game wonder potentially. Who knows? I think his team loves him. I think all the supporters love him. The game loves him.

KELRICK MARTIN, FILM MAKER: I think it's just up to him, really, to see where he goes to from here. So, I don't have any expectations. I'm just really keen to see what happens next.