Indigenous round will be celebrated in the last round of the Gold Industry Group West Australian Netball League this weekend.
This weekend is about celebrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and the tremendous contribution Indigenous players have in our game.
To celebrate and pay respect to Aboriginal culture, West Coast Warriors and Southside Demons will wear Indigenous themed dresses, designed in-house, for their clash on Sunday afternoon at the Gold Netball Centre.
Warriors Head Coach Lorraine Ward approached goal shooter and West Coast Fever training partner Donnell Wallam to design the dress.
“I felt really honoured to be asked by a club I had only been with for a season. It made me feel proud to be at the club,” Wallam said.
Wallam sought help from her family members, who are also artists, in incorporating a design which tells the story of her family – YONGKA NYITTING – kangaroo dreaming.
“My Wallam family totem is the kangaroo. My artwork represents my family, hunting, camping and being on country in my hometown of Harvey.”
The design features footprints travelling from camp to camp along with the yongka (kangaroo) trail going along the centre. The green stripes through the middle represent the bushland surrounding Harvey.
She is excited to see her teammates take to the court in the dress and has been overwhelmed by the support from her teammates.
“It makes me feel so proud, this means so much to me to see the players embracing the round and their willingness to learn more and ask questions about my culture and get a bit of understanding. Not only do I get to represent my family and my people, but I get to educate my teammates and they appreciate that too.” Wallam said.
The Demons Indigenous themed dress has been designed by coach Josie Janz-Dawson along with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players Shakayla Ugle, Roberta, Lauren and Jacinta Ramirez-Smith, Alicia Janz and Shadae Walley.
The design of the dress includes Aboriginal concepts which are an expression of the player’s connectedness to Country, for storytelling about the Dreaming and all creations on earth. Whilst the Torres Strait Islander art concepts are an expression of connectedness to the sea, reef and marine life.
“Our Southside Demons Netball Club wanted to have a dress designed for Indigenous Round to share our rich and diverse culture with the wider netball community,” Janz-Dawson said.
“We wanted to design something that represented our netball club and incorporate the different Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players that we have as part of Southside Demons Netball Club.”
Janz-Dawson said she hoped more clubs would continue to get involved.
“There are a lot of positive things happening in our communities and we need to continue to share these outcomes with the next generation to ensure they can set a positive path for themselves and also for the wider community to be stronger allies with us,” Janz-Dawson said.
Wallam said Indigenous Round is not only a time to celebrate all the Indigenous players in the game, but also to educate the netball community and bring everyone together. There will be no doubt Wallam will continue to be on target for the Warriors and put on another high score performance in a round that means so much to her.
“I love this round, it’s a celebration of all Indigenous players, but also an opportunity to educate non-Indigenous people about our culture and our history. To see everyone embracing the round and learning about the design and what it means to the Indigenous players bring a harmonious feeling on and off the court.”
East Freo Sharks will wear bibs displaying Indigenous artwork, for their Friday night clash with Curtin Hamersley Comets.
