There was a huge celebration of culture and sports last week for the Hume Dhelk Dja Regional Action Group and the Apprenticeship Factory Kyabram District League’s (KDL) 2019 NAIDOC dinner.
The dinner event was also an opportunity to formally celebrate the launch of the KDL Indigenous round apparel. This huge milestone, eight years in the making, will guide approaches to instil Aboriginal culture and understanding throughout the league, affiliated clubs and surrounding communities.
Hume Dhelk Dja and the KDL have partnered through the Preventing the Cycle of Violence Aboriginal Fund to upscale the ‘Say No to Violence’ games, which take place during round six, and to also introduce an Indigenous round for the entire league – which will be taking place this year on July 27.
During the Indigenous round, all fifteen clubs in the KDL will be wearing the new sportswear. This includes seniors, reserves and thirds football teams, along with the A, B, C, under 17s and under 15s netball teams. All players will be wearing the specially designed apparel by artist Tom Day, Loco Sportswear and the Hume Dhelk Dja regional coordinator.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags will be painted on the Undera and Stanhope football ovals for the round and during the Undera vs Longwood match, there will be dancers and a traditional smoking ceremony prior to the senior’s game.
During the special NAIDOC dinner and apparel launch last week, attendees were treated to a traditional opening on the catwalk, followed by all club representatives modelling their apparel.
The apparel designs for the special Indigenous round can be viewed on the KDL Facebook page @KDLeague, along with a live stream of the entire parade/launch.
