Ten teams will fight it out for a $100,000 prize pool when the inaugural Tribal League competition gets underway in New South Wales next month.
Launched by the National Indigenous Rugby League Administration, the tournament will run over three consecutive weekends from November 7, with matches played in Dubbo, the Central Coast and Sydney.
There will be six men's teams and four women's teams that will participate in all the action.
And here they are.
A combined Newcastle Hawks team will draw plenty of interest, as will the Wellington Castlereagh All Blacks, Wiradjuri Googars and the Coastal Connections, who are sure to have a few familiar faces from the defending Koori Knockout champions South Coast Black Cockatoos.
Regular Knockout teams the Redfern All Blacks and Walgett Aboriginal Connection will also compete.
The All Blacks and Hawks will fight out the women's side of the draw along with the Blacktown Redbelly Warriors and North-West Connections.
Event co-organiser George Rose, who is also a host of NITV's Over The Black Dot, said he is excited about the prospect.
"it’s also great for our wellbeing especially after the year we’ve just had," he said.
“We play exciting footy, Indigenous Players are the ones we all love to watch in the big leagues, I want to keep seeing more and more.
The interest from players wanting to participate is massive."
Coronavirus restrictions, which ultimately forced the cancellation of the 2020 Koori Knockout in Nowra, also mean that teams from Queensland, Northern Territory and Victoria are unable to participate in Tribal League this year.
The most current New South Wales COVID-19 guidelines will be in force at the matches, and all potential spectators will have to purchase their tickets in advance online. This is to prevent queueing at venues and for adequate contact tracing.
All matches will be 20 minutes each half with all teams playing each other in the first two weeks of the tournament. Finals will take place in the third week in Sydney.
Besides the match ups, there will also be a sprint race to determine the fastest player in the competition, a kicking challenge and a potential agility challenge.
South Sydney Rabbitohs winger Rikka Lamb said the tournament is another chance for our players to be seen.
“Tribal League will allow younger development players to compete against elite Indigenous athletes that compete in our top competitions," she said.
“And all players get to showcase the talent that Indigenous people have”
More details on the event will be released in the following weeks by National Indigenous Rugby League.
