ADAM Sweid and Hussien El Achkar can remember first crossing paths in an under-eight game between Hadfield and Glenroy in the Essendon District Football League. Now a decade later, the two teenagers are set to blaze a new trail by becoming the first pair of Australian Muslims selected in the same Telstra AFL Draft.
The pair knew each other by the time they were invited to join Essendon's Next Generation Academy at the age of 13 and have become increasingly tight the further they have progressed through the pathways. They know they represent not just themselves and their Lebanese families, but also represent the wider Islamic community in Melbourne's north-west.
Essendon rookie Saad El-Hawli became just the sixth Muslim to play in the AFL when he made his debut against Port Adelaide during Ramadan in March, following Sedat Sir, Adem Yze, Bachar Houli, Ahmed Saad and current Carlton half-back Adam Saad.
Last year, Bombers list manager Matt Rosa protected a first-round pick for this year by trading pick No.9 to Melbourne, while stockpiling picks to match a bid for Next Generation Academy product Isaac Kako. This year, the Bombers are currently armed with picks four, five, 22 and 25, but are yet to signal their intent to Sweid or El Achkar. They can't. At least not yet.
Nearly a dozen other clubs have reached out to their manager, Max Hayes from TGI Sport, to arrange interviews before the Draft Combine in October. Some recruiters view them as late night one prospects, others can't see them lasting too long on night two. Sweid has bolted up boards this year, while El Achkar has been viewed as one of the best small forwards in the pool for some time.
No matter where they are selected or where they land in the country, Sweid and El Achkar want to grab the baton and be the next role models for Australian Muslims chasing a dream that previously lacked representation. If you can see it, you can be it. They are about to be it.
"That is one of the goals. From 15, we knew that a Muslim playing AFL doesn't happen often. You've got Ahmed Saad, Bachar Houli, Adam Saad and now Saad El-Hawli. That's four. How many Muslims try to make it and it doesn't always happen for whatever reason," Sweid told AFL.com.au this month.
"To hopefully have two come up in the same draft class, it doesn't happen, it would be amazing just to do it for our younger brothers to aspire to be like you or play like you. It’s a good feeling to know that the Muslim community respect what we do and are happy for us as well. No jealousy, they really appreciate the hard work we do."
Adam Saad is El Achkar's cousin, someone who has shown the 171cm small forward how to grind from West Coburg in the EDFL to Coburg in the VFL, before taking his chance in the AFL, first as a 20-year-old rookie at Gold Coast before starring for Essendon and then becoming an All-Australian at Carlton in 2022.
"Adam Saad has been huge for me," El Achkar explains. "Having a cousin that has made it. He is a role model to me and a young Australian Muslim. His footy is so elite the way he goes about it, Ramadan and how he speaks about it
"I've got a lot of little cousins that look up to us. They are always asking if I'm going to play AFL. Seeing their faces when I go and play footy, it means so much to them. They were crying after losing a final.
"I'm trying to be a role model for all my cousins and the wider Muslim community. I'm trying to make it for them and give them the hope that they can make it. Right now, there aren't many Muslim players in the AFL. If they see us doing it, they will think, 'Why can't we do it?' So it's important to give them the hope. Hopefully their dreams can come true one day."
El Achkar (pronounced El-Ash-Car) completed school last year at the Bachar Houli Foundation (BHF), which is located at Richmond Football Club. He has remained involved at the school in the strength and conditioning team, where Sweid is still studying this year. Sweid jokes that El Achkar demands he calls him 'Sir' when we meet for a coffee in Richmond this month.
Before Bachar Houli became a three-time premiership great at Richmond, the devout Muslim started the program in 2012 and has dedicated his life to promoting social inclusion by breaking barriers in Australia for those from Islamic backgrounds. Former Saint Ahmed Saad has worked closely with El Achkar in his role as BHF head of programs and high performance.
"Bachar Houli is such a good role model for us. He is our faith guy, just shows what it is to be a young Muslim from Australia," El Achkar said.
"The Bachar Houli [Foundation], I think they've changed my footy, my faith and me as a person. They've made me a young humble man and respectful. I started there six years ago and I remember being there around Bachar and some older boys just wanting to be like them."
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FAITH has taught Sweid (pronounced suede) how to not just cope with disappointment but grow from it. Last year was essentially a write off. The 175cm midfielder-forward ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament while playing for Pascoe Vale in an under-16 EDFL Grand Final at the end of 2023.
It took him just over 10 months to fully recover after undergoing a knee reconstruction. Sweid returned last August and played eight games for Pascoe Vale in the under-18s, regaining confidence in his knee and form to build momentum into his draft year.
This year, his form was so good at the Cannons he was picked for Vic Metro after six Coates Talent League games, where he played so well in the national championships that he was named in the Marsh AFL National Under-18 Boys Championships All-Australian Team.
"I think it [knee reconstruction] made me better. As a Muslim, you go back to your faith, you go back to God, and he always says stay humble. We all have a story, and everyone's story is written, everyone's story is different," Sweid said.
"I think the smartness I've gained from the year off, watching 'Hussy' and the way he was going, it motivated me knowing what one of my good mates was doing. I just tried to stay as focused as possible. I knew my story was going to come. I thought I was a good footballer, I just had to be patient."
El-Hawli, like Adam Saad, was forced to persevere longer than most to make it. He wasn't selected until the age of 23. By then, he was selling used cars in Laverton during the week and starring for the Northern Bullants in the VFL on weekends. El-Hawli made his debut for the Bombers at the end of Ramadan. Three days later, Sweid played his first Coates Talent League game.
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"For a person to be 23 and not stop to get there, shows the person he is to train hard and get an opportunity during Ramadan," Sweid said. "He played with confidence and took the opportunity. He has been a great role model at the club, he reminds us to pray, asks us if we want to come upstairs with him. He called me when I played my first game for Calder and told me he was proud of me. He knew what I'd done to come back from my knee."
While Sweid was injured, El Achkar played 15 games as a bottom-ager for the Cannons, around two senior games for Pascoe Vale in the EDFL. He spent much of the year training and playing with Kako, learning off the best small forward in the 2024 draft class.
"He is basically an older brother to me," El Achkar said. "It started last pre-season with him teaching me how hard you've got to train, small forward craft and knowledge. I always sat with him in meetings at Calder and he fed me so much information and knowledge. He told me during pre-season to just follow him around and do what he does. He has helped me so much."
El Achkar has been forced to deal with injury niggles across the year, but he has shown patches of brilliance, like on the weekend when he kicked three goals in the first quarter against the Northern Knights at Preston City Oval. That followed three goals a week earlier against Sandringham – he kicked six against the Dragons in June – after starting the year with 10 across the first three rounds. He also slotted three against Brisbane in a VFL appearance for Essendon at the end of May. It's not hard to see why some scouts see Izak Rankine traits in his game.
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THE CORONAVIRUS pandemic put the James Hird Academy on hold, but since 2022 El Achkar has been a regular fixture at The Hangar, training under the guidance of Marty Allison, alongside Sweid and, last year, Jayden Nguyen, who was selected as a Category B rookie and became the first player of Vietnamese descent to play AFL.
"I think they've done so much for us. For me it started back when I was 13. I played a game against Carlton and then COVID hit, so no NGA for a couple of years," El Achkar said. "Since 2022 we started going every second Monday into The Hangar, coaching, training, from Marty in the James Hird Academy. This year we did pre-season with the Bombers for two weeks. During the season we've been training each week and learned so much about what they do."
El Achkar and Sweid would love to be picked by Essendon, but know that might not happen. They are prepared to play anywhere in the country. "Whatever club, any club. I'm just happy to be on a list anywhere. You give me a chance and I'll fly out the next day. I'll give 100 per cent wherever I go," El Achkar said.
Sweid's dream was in tatters when he did his knee, but now the phone is running hot. Clubs are asking for more details, GPS data, arranging interviews, ensuring they don't overlook him just because he is tied to Essendon.
"My goal and my dream since I was a little kid was to be on an AFL list. My problem is to play football and do my best to get drafted and make it hard for them. I want to show that I'm a good prospect. Wherever it is I go that's for them to figure out," Sweid said.
"Everyone's story is different. We don't be jealous about others, we don't judge, God has a plan for everyone. My plan was to come back from an ACL and show them what I can do. I believe I work very hard, and it has showed. Not many players have missed a bottom-age year after doing a knee and come back and started this well. I'm grateful for the opportunities I've gotten. I go back to my faith with my ACL."
Richmond veteran Dion Prestia is Sweid's blueprint when he plays in the middle, while Hawthorn star Dylan Moore is who he moulds his game on forward. Beyond Australia, former Russian UFC fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov sets the standard for how Sweid wants to carry himself as an athlete.
"Of all the athletes in the world, Khabib has set the best example. His full belief is pray, train, eat, sleep, repeat," Sweid explained.
"He has been doubted so many times. He had the whole world against him when he was fighting Conor McGregor and he kept saying, 'Alhamdulillah', which means thank God always. He reminded the whole world to thank God. The way he went about it, to have everyone against him, and someone like Conor McGregor who loves to talk, loves to get in people's heads, to ignore and thank God and be grateful and humble, doesn't buy those fancy cars, those fancy clothes, doesn't show it on social media. He is amazing the way he goes about it. To see those videos of how humble he is, that's what I want to be, I don't want to be arrogant, I just want to stay humble."
Sweid and El Achkar's fathers were born and raised in Lebanon. They met their wives over there, before deciding to emigrate to Australia. They wanted a better future for their children in Melbourne. Now Adam Sweid and Hussien El Achkar are about to inspire the future of Australian Muslim athletes.
