Boxing Day Test man of the match to be presented the Mullagh Medal

There is a new award for the man of the match in the Boxing Day Test and it honours an Indigenous Australian with statistics hardly conceivable.

Cricket Australia announced the best player of the Melbourne Test match will receive the Mullagh Medal, named after Johnny Mullagh.

He was the best player from the 1868 Aboriginal team that became the first sporting team from Australia to tour internationally.

The medal is part of Cricket Australia’s Reconciliation Action Plan, but it is more than reflecting on Indigenous cricketers who were never recognised for their achievements.

It is about appealing to more young Indigenous Australians to be involved in the game of cricket.

Who was Johnny Mullagh and what was the 1868 tour?

Three decades before…