An Australian suburb in Melbourne is becoming a growing fan base for the University of Hawaii basketball team.

Interest sparked when Melbourne-reared Mate Colina, a 7-foot center with the Rainbow Warriors, signed a future contract with the Richmond Tigers of the Australian Football League. The AFL — footy to the participants — has been likened to a rugby-soccer hybrid with elements of American football. Footy is considered to be Australia’s most popular spectator sport. Richmond, a suburb of Melbourne, won the 2019 Grand Final, the AFL’s version of the Super Bowl.

Colina’s deal allows him to play the final two basketball seasons of his UH career.

“For sure, I’m going to finish at Hawaii,” said Colina, a junior who has been participating in the ’Bows’ offseason training. “I’m going to play both seasons. This won’t affect anything I’m doing at UH or any of my time here. I’m going to be 100% committed to what I’m doing here and doing whatever I can to have success with the team and continue to help the program grow.”

After completing his UH career, Colina has the option of pursuing basketball professionally or joining the Tigers. The Tigers hold Colina’s AFL rights even after the three-year contract expires. “If I ever choose to play AFL, my team is going to be Richmond,” Colina said. “The exciting thing with that is it’s such a prestigious club and they have such a rich history.”

The Richmond Football Club, which sponsors the Tigers, has a membership (paid fan base) of more than 100,000, the most of any Australian sports club. Colina’s signing last week appears to have piqued interest in UH basketball.

“It’s grown Hawaii in the Australian eyes,” Colina said. “Not many college teams are renowned over there. Once the news came out, it was all over the media there. Everyone was going, ‘oh, we love Hawaii, too. We’re going to watch the games and all that kind of stuff. … I think the coolest thing is both sports have new supporters. Everyone I see, they say, ‘we’re going for Richmond now that (you’ve signed) there.’ And before, they didn’t even know what AFL was.”

Colina played both sports growing up in Australia and appeared destined for an AFL career. But that changed when he received an invitation to join Australia’s Center for Excellence program and represent the country in international tournaments.

Colina eventually signed with UH and joined the ’Bows in January 2018. He redshirted that semester. The past two seasons, he has been a menacing defender, active rebounder and skilled screen setter. This offseason, he has worked on expanding his shooting range.

This summer, several AFL teams expressed interest in Colina. He based his decision on ties — his cousin is with the Tigers — and the assurance he would have the option of pursuing the sport of his choosing following his UH graduation. Colina signed as a category-B rookie, enabling him to bypass the draft. He is projected to play ruckman, a spot involving jump-ball skills, and on the forward line.

The deal allows Colina privileges at Punt Road Oval, the Tigers’ headquarters and training facility. The center is adjacent to Melbourne Cricket Ground, a 100,024-seat stadium where the Tigers play their home games.