The Sunday Read: Nestory Irankunda and the Socceroos deserve celebration
6/20/20265 min
Socceroo Nestory Irankunda is part of a new generation of players who have renewed hopes for Australia’s chances in the Fifa World Cup. Multimedia journalist Bertin Huynh says as One Nation surges in the polls, those who represent us deserve celebration
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsSpeaker 1· Soundbite0:00
[gentle music] This is The Guardian.
Noor Haidar· Host0:02
Hi, Noor Haidar here, coming to you from Gadigal Land, and this is The Sunday Read. All eyes have been on Socceroo Nestory Irukunda after Australia's first game against Turkey at the World Cup. Now, the young Australian is part of a new generation of players who have renewed hopes for Australia's football success. Today, multimedia journalist Berton Huynh reflects on Australia's love for Nestory Irukunda amid One Nation's surge in the polls.
Berton Huynh0:44
The last time I wrote about refugees, I kept getting a certain type of comment, that people like my parents were the right kind of refugee, the good ones, deserving of a place in Australia. Last week, as I watched Australia play Turkey in the World Cup among a crowd gathered in Melbourne's Federation Square, [crowd cheering] I wondered if the same standard would be applied. Then Nestory Irukunda scored the first of two world-class goals. Turkey, despite having possession of the ball for most of the match, lost. The crowd went wild.
Unknown speaker1:26
[crowd cheering]