Indigenous Rounds in sport are commonplace, with the aim of celebrating and recognising the contribution of Firsts Nations people to the game. It’s also important to raise awareness beyond the game and glean greater understanding of the history and culture of Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander people within the country.
This year, Netball Tasmania looked to incorporate a very local lens during our fifth annual indigenous rounds, to be played in the 1st Energy Tasmanian Netball League on July 1st and 2nd. A competition was shared with the Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander (ATSI) community in Tasmanian schools via Deadly Choices, a health promotion group founded by the Institute for Urban Indigenous Health aiming to empower ATSI people to make healthy and active choices. Students were tasked with creating a design that was uniquely Tasmanian and represented ATSI history and culture.
Many entries were submitted, with Pakana student of St Virgil’s College Tjalan Langdon being deemed the successful artist by a Netball Tasmania panel. Tjalan’s design featured footprints to represent the importance of walkabout, the grass tree to reflect his family’s totem, the river or ‘muka’ to demonstrate the importance of salt water to the mob, and to showcase the sun that shines over the land.
Senior elder Aunty Verna Nicholls, or Nan Verna to Tjalan, helped inspire the piece, by talking about the landscapes and features of the homeland of the family tribe. Based on Flinders Island today, and from Flinders Island, Cape Barron Island and across North-Eastern Tasmanian in general, listening to Aunty Verna discuss elements from the region to include allowed Tjalan’s imagination to run wild, and create the design that has been brought to life in ball form today.
A passionate advocate for his Indigenous history and culture, Tjalan is a worthy winner of our competition, and is proud to see his art on display in a state-wide competition now, and into the future.
