The proud Yorta Yorta man has been named the 2023 Sir Doug Nicholls Round honouree, joining AFL greats Bill Dempsey, Syd Jackson, Michael Long and Graham ‘‘Polly’’ Farmer as the fifth individual to be bestowed the title.
Sir Doug Nicholls Round celebrates the contributions made by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to Australian football, with AFL chief executive Gil McLachlan acknowledging James’ dedication to the sport at the highest level.
"Glenn’s contribution to our game as the first Aboriginal umpire and to the community more broadly over the years has been momentous," McLachlan told AFL.com
"Polly, Longy, Syd, Bill and now Glenn, joining an illustrious and distinguished group of honourees.
"Sir Doug Nicholls Round is a highlight of the football calendar and one that allows our industry the opportunity to celebrate, acknowledge and thank Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players, volunteers, administrators, umpires and fans past and present for their contributions to our game and the football community."
There’s more to James’ connection with Sir Doug Nicholls than meets the eye.
Spanning back to his childhood years, the Shepparton local drew inspiration from Nicholls, a sporting great and dynamic religious speaker, well before he ever stepped into the limelight of VFL umpiring.
"We'd go to church because Pastor Doug would come up to The Church of Christ at Mooroopna. To us he was a cult hero,” James told AFL.com
“We'd jump on the bus and go over there on the Sunday night to hear him speak."
James would take Nicholls’ words of wisdom into battle as he served for the Australian Army in 1968, enlisting for a tour of duty in Vietnam.
Upon return, he’d pull on the footy boots for Wunghnu in the Picola District Football League – but it wouldn’t be long until injury cut his playing career short.
A broken jaw meant James took up umpiring as an alternative and in the blink of an eye, he found himself in the big leagues.
“In 1972 I umpired a couple of grand finals around the Murray Football League and a VFL umpiring observer invited me down to Melbourne,” James told AFL.com
"It (the first VFL game) was just fantastic. It was Fitzroy and Footscray out at VFL Park in 1977.
“After the bounce a player handballed it out to Bernie Quinlan and he banged it through from about 70m out.
“I knew straight away that this was a different type of footy, this was a different game."
James went on to umpire 166 VFL matches between 1977 and 1985, including the 1982 and 1984 VFL grand finals to be eventually named umpire in the Indigenous Team of the Century.
His latest gong adds to a mantle including an Order of Australia Medal, a VFL Umpires Association life membership and Greater Shepparton sports Hall of Fame induction.
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