NRL 2020 Indigenous Round: Peter V'landys, NRL stars repair media trust

Laid bare: Renouf, racism and rugby league

Author: Dan Walsh NRL.com Reporter
Timestamp: Sat 1 Aug 2020, 08:01 AM

Peter V'landys launched Indigenous Round and the NRL's "Pass Back. Move Forward" campaign on Monday with a 20-metre spiral back to last December.

Recalling how "I was ashamed of myself" after an emotion-charged meeting with the game's most senior Indigenous players.

Media coverage around Latrell Mitchell, and the ongoing debate around the Australian anthem were the flashpoints.

A feeling of underwhelming support from head office was the undercurrent, with V'landys walking away vowing to "take up this cause with a passion".

Six months on, senior Indigenous players Joel Thompson, Ryan James and Tyrone Roberts phoned their NRL counterparts once more.

Josh Addo-Carr at Melbourne and Blake Ferguson at Parramatta were already circulating WhatsApp messages around taking a collectively knee in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.

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Addo-Carr: Why it's a special week for our people

The last time leading Indigenous players responded to a delicate issue – the choice of Cody Walker and others not to sing the national anthem during Origin – the fallout was immense.

A year from that initial anthem controversy, V'landys and the NRL executive made it plain that players taking a knee was endorsed by the governing body.

"It's pretty unprecedented this support from the NRL, it makes me so proud of our game," Thompson told NRL.com.

"It did sort of start with that meeting last year. We had concerns about our place in the game and our players, the way they were being treated.

"Peter's obviously got a busy schedule but he took the time to come and sit with us and share some stories and listen to our stories.

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How Indigenous identity discovery transformed Badger’s life

"He shared a few of his own experiences from growing up as well.

"But overall he was there to support us players and that's what it's all about.

"There was some emotion for some, but it was also just a healthy conversation, sharing our opinions where we didn't feel like we were being heard before.

"I think going forward it's benefiting everyone to have healthy, happy players who believe in where the game is going. It goes both ways with that support."

'Pass Back. Move Forward.' It works on a rugby league level.

And it works because more and more, counterparts from across the game are standing, taking a knee or whatever it be, alongside their Indigenous friends, teammates and opponents.

Earlier this week Thompson was holding court during the NRL's Online Yarning Circle, a live seminar broadcast to high school students across the country.

North Queensland's Indigenous Round jersey. The ‘Chosen One’ jersey design is the winner of the Cowboys annual Indigenous Jersey Design Competition, designed by artist William Chambers. In the Torres Strait and North Queensland Indigenous communities, the Sea Turtle is considered a delicacy. This painting represents the turtle’s journey from hatchling to fully grown adult. The smaller turtles are hatchlings on their journey from the shore to the open sea. The circles represent all obstacles and predators; not all become fully grown. The hunters with spears look for the chosen one which will become food. The fully grown turtle is also the chosen one as it gets its chance to reproduce and continue the cycle of life.

David Nofoaluma in the Wests Tigers' 2020 Indigenous Round jersey, named ‘Guwing & Yunada’ (meaning Sun & Moon in Dharawal language). Location on jersey: Front & Back Created: 6th September 2019 Meaning: This artwork exhibits emu and kangaroo living amongst each other, while the sun and moon are on the verge of switching positions at dusk. Artwork name: ‘River Flow’ Location on jersey: Sleeves Created: 5th August 2019 Meaning: This artwork symbolises life. Much like a river flow we are moving forward in our lives, and with moving forward we are all directed onto certain pathways. The blue water represents people flowing down the river in a forward motion whilst the brown, red and white represent guides putting people into the right direction

Cronulla's Indigenous Round jersey, designed by Alara Geebung (Cameron). Entitled “Coming Together”, the Sharks 2020 Indigenous Jersey has been designed with the intricate artwork a direct reconnection to the ways of “our old people”, it’s an illustration which also represents a oneness with mother nature and equanimity of mind. The night sky spirit animals represent and pay tribute to the players totems and the oneness between spirt and sky to land and sea. Through dreamtime stories, the nation’s first peoples, and widely respected by the wider community, as a symbol of Australia, the Southern Cross features as a connection between both cultures.

Blake Ferguson in the Eels' 2020 Indigenous Round jersey. The Eels will play the Bulldogs wearing specially designed jerseys by Aboriginal artist Danielle Mate Sullivan, with input from Eels player Will Smith. The artwork is called ‘Connection’ and represents the connection to the past and present. The large circle on the front of the jersey represents the meeting place for the players/warriors of the game, while the line to the top is a journey line to the players’ homelands.

There’s four hands on the back that represent Eels indigenous players Blake Ferguson and Will Smith’s children. The smaller circles are a nod to communities the Eels visit and work with. The past is represented by the warrior and the Parramatta River. The Burramattagal people, who are a clan of the Darug, have a connection to this river where they ﬁrst settled and caught ﬁsh, eels and other sources of food Colours from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flags feature on the sides of the jersey.

Scott Prince models the Broncos' 2020 Indigenous Round jersey designed by Elaine Chambers-Hegarty. The centre of the jersey is the meeting ground where people from north, south, east and west gather to unite their communities under the watch of their ancestors. Circles throughout the jersey represent communities in which the Broncos and Deadly Choices operate. Some are connected, and others are more remote. Wavy lines to the community areas show the rivers and waterways currently suffering through drought. Markings around show sections representing the people of the Torres Strait Islands.

Angus Crichton in the Roosters' 2020 Indigenous Round jersey. The Sydney Roosters ‘Club’ is depicted as the main circle in the top left-hand corner. There are journey lines branching out from the circle which represents the many community programs and events the Roosters are involved in. The outline of the Rooster logo is overlapping the circle and shows the strength and support of all areas of the Club. The Sydney Roosters logo is outlined in dot work to represent the ongoing Indigenous heritage of the players, staff and members of the Club. Below are the totems of the Indigenous players of the Sydney Roosters, including players from the Junior Squads to the NRL. The totems contain symbols that represent land, sea and sky. The footprints and surrounding area indicate the act of dancing and kicking up dust, which signifies the moving in the womb of Mother Earth. This act relates to the Roosters when they take to the field during Indigenous Round in 2020.

Gold Coast's Indigenous Round jersey. Connection with community, passion, support and togetherness are the key messages from the inspiring artwork “Healing” from Coffs Harbour artist Laura Pitt, that has been chosen as the design for the Gold Coast Titans 2020 Indigenous jersey. The blue circles in the middle with the symbols on the outside represent the Titans community, passion is represented through the coloured dots surrounding the players and supporters with links of the blue and ochre lines that merge together as one. The handprints and blue and white waterholes surrounding the area represent connection to the land. The blue and yellow healing leaves represent the resilience of the team that play together and heal together.

South Sydney's Indigenous Round jersey. For the 2020 NRL Indigenous Round, the Rabbitohs will be wearing culture on their sleeves, representing the proud legacy of the indigenous players who have worn the Jersey before them. In collaboration with our Indigenous players and artist Uncle Joe Walker, the Jersey design connects all the different communities, players and their stories to the Black Rabbit.

Adam Elliott models Canterbury's Indigenous Round jersey, designed by local Indigenous students from Bethlehem College, Ashfield. The design of this year’s Jersey features traditional artwork by the Students, symbolising the coming together of our community for Indigenous Round. Indigenous and Non-Indigenous players, Members of our community and the designers themselves are represented as Suns on the Jersey arranged around a meeting place – in this instance, our match against the Eels. Also included on the Jersey are totem animals of the local area and the Cooks River, which has long enabled many tribes to come together.

Manly's Indigenous Round jersey. The large blue circular design feature positioned in the bottom right corner of the jersey represents the Manly district and Brookvale, with its tentacles and tributaries reaching far beyond, embracing fans across the country. At the centre of the circle is a map of the Manly/Warringah/Pittwater districts. There are also seventeen lines, one for each of the warriors selected to represent the 2020 Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in the NRL each week. The carefully dotted lines also represent the journeys undertaken by Indigenous players, past and present, who have proudly represented the Manly club and their Peoples. At the end of each journey, the players communities and grass roots footy are depicted. It is, in essence, the starting point from where the Rugby League adventure begins for all First Nations players.

The Dragons' 2020 Indigenous Round jersey. The front of jersey design, entitled Dragons Community by Watson, showcases spiritual guides, the humpback and footprints of the kangaroo within the hunting boomerang and pays respect to the Dragons' playing group, their families, staff and supporters including the Dharawal-speaking people. The smaller community groups and pathways in grey represent the different backgrounds and journeys travelled by all players and supporters, showing that in the end they are all tied together by the strength of the Dragon’s jersey.

The lower back of jersey design, entitled Dharawal Country – Spirit of the Dragons by Binge, demonstrates a representation of two meeting places – Netstrata Jubilee Stadium and WIN Stadium – while the U-shaped symbols embody the traditional Bidjigal and Wadi Wadi custodians where the stadiums stands. The little people are a depiction of the youth while the two spirit figures watch over and guide them through life. Hands are a representation of the traditional custodians of the land while the circle symbolises community; the whale is the totemic animal of the Dharawal people, and the goanna represents the people of the mainland. These three symbols represent health, education and social issues.

Canberra's Indigenous Round jersey. Artist Lynnice Church, an Aboriginal woman from the Ngunnawal, Wiradjuri and Kamilaroi Tribes who previously held a position on the ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body, is credited with the jersey design which carries artwork associated with the region’s Reconciliation Public Holiday, which occurred on Monday 1 June 2020.

Penrith's Indigenous Round jersey, designed by Natasha Fordham. The front of the jersey features the meeting place of Panthers Stadium on Darug land, flanked by the Nepean River, local wildlife and the Blue Mountains The setting sun creates an eye-catching silhouette to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land the Panthers community calls home today Designed by Natasha Fordham in collaboration with Panthers Indigenous Welfare Officer Glen Liddiard and Panthers players Brent Naden, Daine Laurie and Brayden McGrady Totems recognising the club's Indigenous players in the NRL squad including Brent Naden (Wiradjuri - goanna), Brayden McGrady (Kamilaroi - snake) and Daine Laurie (Bundjalung / Yaegl - turtle) Fans will be able to bid for match-worn jerseys signed by the individual player directly after the game via shop.penrithpanthers.com.au

Melbourne's Indigenous Round jersey, designed by Ky-ya Nicholson Ward, a 17-year-old Wurundjeri, Dja Dja Wurrung, and Ngurai illum Wurrung woman. The jersey is called ‘Jindi Worobak’ which means ‘Join and Unite’ in Woiwurrung which is the language of my people, the Wurundjeri people, the traditional custodians of Narrm (Melbourne). This is my way as an artist to acknowledge the players, the workers, volunteers and fans that all join and unite to create the amazing Melbourne Storm community and environment. The centre circle on the jersey represents AAMI Park, and the white circles represent the staff, fans and crowd who come united as one to support the players. It represents how when we all come together as one, we are stronger. The joint circles flowing through the middle section of the jersey represent the Birrarung (Yarra River) which is a very significant and spiritual river to my people. ‘Birrarung’ means ‘river of mists’ in Woiwurrung, this is because the mist dances along the river at dawn which is linked to my people’s dreamtime/creation stories.

The Warriors' Indigenous Round jersey, designed by Dave Burke. Tāua Tahi is the Māori way of saying “That’s Us” - Indigenous populations share many cultural similarities around how we relate to our environments particularly land, water people and language. Tāua tahi the 2020 indigenous jersey acknowledges these similarities and shared realities on field and off field. It represents the players coming together and below is the next generation who are inspired by the coming together of our indigenous people and the change that can be created by understanding and respecting each other.

The Newcastle jersey was designed by local Aboriginal artist Tyler Smith with feedback from Knights players Connor Watson, Edrick Lee and Gehamat Shibasaki. In creating a deeper bond to the region and its people, Smith enlisted the assistance of four young Indigenous detainees through his art program at Frank Baxter Youth Justice Centre. The design of the jersey represents the local landscape of Newcastle, the wider region and also incorporates the handprints of the three players. Central to the design is the implementation of three totems representing the three players - Goanna (Watson), Turtle (Shibasaki) and Saltwater Crocodile (Lee).

The Manly veteran was asked "what's Des Hasler really like?" by a curious kid.

Thompson responded with the grizzly coach's reaction to the story he and Daly Cherry-Evans had been interviewed for a day prior, in which Thompson had explained his anthem stance to his skipper.

"He said he was really proud of me and Chez doing the article in the [Daily] Telegraph," Thompson told the forum.

"He said it was really emotional for himself and how proud he was of us speaking about Indigenous culture and how presenting a united front is the next step.

"He called us in after our video session, and we saw how much it affected Des.

"And just how proud he was that we had stood up and talked about it."

After that initial meeting with a core Indigenous leadership group, V'landys rang around the editors of media organisations to address the coverage of Indigenous players in the game.

Latrell Mitchell's off-season contract saga was the catalyst. The consequences of the introspection that followed, by all parties, has been stark.

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Back to Country: Indigenous players reconnect

"I hope that in this round we educate other people like me to get a better understanding, and to show the hurt that can happen when you don't understand," V'landys said on Monday.

"If we can use rugby league for that, we're using it for a great purpose."

Some of the stories told this week by Indigenous players have nothing short of phenomenal.

Steve Renouf's raw and confronting battles with racism three decades ago are as powerful as caught on a camera in rugby league.

Mitchell's own detailing of abuse and mental health battles thirty years on just as stark.

Cody Walker's young fella embraced the "shake-a-leg" on the front page of The Sydney Morning Herald.

Gavin Badger told of how tracing his Indigenous roots changed his life.

In "passing back" the struggles and hurt of the past must be acknowledged.

There's no moving forward without it, or the storytelling that has formed the bedrock of the world's oldest culture.

"I think it's been fantastic, I've been really proud of some of the stories told this week," Thompson said.

"As far as Indigenous Round goes I think this has been the best so far for me, previously we've shown our culture through our jerseys and playing.

"But this year we're telling our stories like never before.

NRL great and the founder of the Indigenous All Stars Preston Campbell.

Wiradjuri man and Storm winger Josh Addo-Carr.

Biripi man and Rabbitohs fullback Latrell Mitchell.

Bundjalung & Yuin man and Rabbitohs five-eighth Cody Walker.

Bundjalung & Yuin man Cody Walker with sons Kade and Kian.

Wiradjuri man and Sharks centre Jesse Ramien.

Ngiyaampa man and Sea Eagles forward Joel Thompson.

Preston Campbell, Ryan James and Rona Peters.

Yam & Badu Islands man and Rabbitohs winger Dane Gagai.

NRL referee Gavin Badger with son Cooper.

ARL commissioner Megan Davis and NRL Indigenous pathways manager Dean Widders.

Indigenous dancers at the 2018 Indigenous Round launch at Suncorp Stadium.

"Showing our art, sharing our stories and really trying to help people understand.

"I think that's how we truly walk together. We've got issues right across all communities, so it can't be just a black fellas fight.

"We need non-indigenous people helping and fighting for us, and the only way that happens is if they understand our culture and have empathy towards some of the things going on.

"People are genuinely interested. They want to know what country we're standing on. It can change someone that conversation, and then you see a ripple effect further down the track."

The views in this article do not necessarily express the opinions of the NRL, ARL Commission, NRL clubs or state associations.