Players from the Tuggeranong Valley Australian Football Netball Club have designed the guernseys to be worn by their teammates for this weekend's AFL's Sir Doug Nicholls round, recognising Indigenous culture within the league.
TVAFNC players, brother and sister Tom and Kristen Hodge, along with Logan Gray and Anthony Lupton, designed the guernsey which will be worn by the first grade men's and women's football teams on Saturday. In a memorable day of footy at Greenway Oval, games start at 9.15am, with a smoking ceremony being held at 1pm. Women's first grade starts at 1.20pm and the men's first grade at 3pm.
Kristen and Tom Hodge, who have Kamilaroi and Wiradjuri Aboriginal heritage, said the guernsey design had a lot of significant features.
The mountains that flow across the back and front of the guernsey represent the Tuggeranong valley "in which our community was built and continues to grow".
The emu and kangaroo tracks that run across the front of the jersey are from "traditional animals found here that our people would hunt and gather to bring back to camp". (And, perhaps also, the mobs of kangaroos that like to hang out on Greenway Oval.)
"Three meeting places represent the three groups within the club. Our senior men's and women's, our juniors and our netball club."
Mr Hodge, who works for Indigenous Allied Health Australia in its cultural responsiveness program, says his art is a hobby but he has also painted designs in the dressing sheds at the Greenway, Rivett and Kambah ovals.
It was a great sight to see players running out in the Indigenous round jerseys he had helped to create.
"So proud," he said.
"[It means] everything. Celebrating our culture, celebrating our contribution to AFL and to the community. Seeing everyone gather around and acknowledge that."
Kristen Hodge said the round was important to anyone with Indigenous heritage.
"Especially when we see our teammates run out in the guernsey that we've designed. It means a lot to us and our culture," she said.
Player Anthony Lupton, whose heritage is with the Bundjalung nation of northern NSW, said he loved wearing the designs on game day, including past jerseys.
"I feel embraced. It's cool just to tell your story," the 20-year-old said.
The Sir Doug Nicholls round is named after the pioneering Aboriginal who played football for Northcote and Fitzroy in Victoria and went on to become the first Aboriginal Australian to become governor of South Australia and the first to be knighted, encouraging reconciliation along the way.
TVAFNC vice-president Luke Jess said the club was more than happy to acknowledge the round.
"It's a really important way for us to celebrate and embrace all the Indigenous players, communities, supporters, families involved with the club," he said.
The jerseys were made possible not only because of the skills of the designers but the financial support of club sponsor Kieran Hynes, owner of Willyama Indigenous ICT Services, Australia's only 100 per cent Indigenous-owned-and-operated cyber security services firm.
"I've been supporting the club since the mid-2000s in various ways. I used to have the paintball field in Tuggeranong and we used to hire a lot of the players during the off season and we'd run the sausage sizzles. So I've always sort of been there or thereabouts," Mr Hynes said.
It was his third year supporting the Indigenous round jersey.
"I've got Aboriginal heritage, I live on southside of town, this is the local footy club and you've got to support your community," Mr Hynes said.
