This year, for the first time ever, Australia will wear an Indigenous printed jersey in their final Bledisloe Cup Test against New Zealand in Brisbane, on October 21.
Rugby union player Kurtley Beale has already shown Australia he's got the moves, culture and fire in his belly to represent his Indigenous heritage.
He was recently spotted performing traditional Aboriginal dance moves, while unveiling of the first ever Indigenous-designed jersey to be warn by the Wallabies in game three of the Bledisloe Cup.
A younger Beale confessed he didn’t know much about his Indigenous heritage, but now, years later, the Kamilaroi man says the feeling to win while wearing a jersey representing culture, heritage and his people would be unforgettable.
"The ARU have helped us take that next step forward so we can start to be recognised and hopefully at the end of the day it's a step towards reconciliation," Beale said.
The artist behind the Indigenous design is the talented Dennis Golding, who previously designed the artwork for the Wests Tigers 2016 Indigenous Jersey.
With 60 Test appearances, Beale who was born in Blacktown on Darug Country, is the most capped of the 14 Indigenous players to have represented the Wallabies.
Indigenous sports star, Mark Ella, has established himself as one of the all-time greats in world rugby union. The former Wallabies player believes the Australian Rugby Union doesn’t do enough to support the growth of Indigenous rugby players - unlike most of the other leading sporting codes.
"Rugby in Australia relies heavily on private schools and whilst there are a large number of Indigenous students in private schools, these days there is no effort at all to promote the code in their communities, which is why rugby will continue to have a poor representation of Indigenous rugby players, men and women," Mr Ella told NITV.
With AAP
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