Joel Amartey's professional sporting career could be playing out very differently.
The Sydney Swans rookie is poised to make his AFL debut this season after a troublesome ankle injury.
However, Amartey may not have been in this position if it wasn't for racial taunts he received playing football as a 10-year-old.
"I probably stopped playing soccer a couple of years after that," Amartey told SBS News.
"When that happened, I just lost passion for the game of soccer and moved on to basketball."
Joel & Clement Amartey pictured together in 2016. Source: Instagram/joelamartey
Amartey's father Clement was born in Ghana and moved to Australia in his 20s.
Joel admits he faced challenges during his upbringing in Melbourne.
"Obviously some scenarios come up where you get teased for being different," Amartey recalls.
"I didn't really know how to handle it when I was a bit younger."
"It hasn't happened to me for a few years now, but I guess you’re always prepared for when it happens again."
He was in Year 7 when he first visited his family in Ghana, an eye-opening experience for him.
"You can't drink the water, you have to boil it if you are going to drink it straight," Amartey said.
"You go to the hen's shop and you just get a live chicken and you have to cut the head off it."
"It was an experience, a lot different to here but definitely worth doing."
Amartey hopes to be a first-team AFL player when he next visits Ghana.
The 19-year-old is preparing for his second season with the Swans after being selected with the 28th pick in the 2017 Rookie Draft.
He's hoping to follow in the footsteps of teammate Aliir Aliir and become a role model for the African community.
"Making the community aware of his people and the culture is something I'll look to do if I stay in the game longer and become a regular in the first grade team," Amartey said.
The Swans begin their 2019 campaign against the Western Bulldogs on Saturday, March 23rd.
