While Tarwin Lower Sharks footballer George Mackenzie is usually found in the thick of the action on the field, last Saturday saw him taking a distinct interest in the local game as a keen observer at the Bairnsdale City Oval.
Mackenzie was in Bairnsdale visiting regional family alongside his parents, who own and operate the largest commercial goose farm in Australia.
Based in South Gippsland, the massive free-range enterprise boasts a flock of 10,000 breeders.
“That is a lot of feathers,” Mackenzie laughed when describing the scale of the family business.
The specialised South Gippsland property services the premium culinary and textiles markets, producing high-end pâté, parfait, clarified goose fat, and harvested down feathers.
Currently a year 12 student at Newhaven College, Mackenzie balances his final-year academic commitments with regular shifts on the family farm. However, his long-term career aspirations lie away from agricultural land. He has his sights firmly set on becoming a professional commercial fisherman, with the ultimate goal of owning and operating his own vessel in the future.
To turn that ambition into reality, Mackenzie splits his remaining spare time between schoolwork and intensive industry training. He works alongside prominent, generational fishing industry leader Luke Anedda, operating out of Port Welshpool for upwards of two days a week.
When asked how his secondary school teachers view his unorthodox schedule and his drive for a highly practical, inquisitive lifestyle, Mackenzie noted that the feedback is varied.
“Some teachers are incredibly positive and supportive of the hands-on path, while others are naturally a bit more cautious about balancing it with standard studies,” he said.
