2024 First Nations Round Guernsey Designs

To celebrate Indigenous culture and heritage during Sir Doug Nicholls Round and SANFL First Nations Round, Adelaide has changed its name to Kuwarna. Pronounced goo-wun-na, Kuwarna is the Kaurna translation for the word Crows.

The Kuwarna guernsey has been crafted by AFL forward Izak Rankine who has worked alongside his cousin, artist Harley Hall, in a celebration of their shared Ngarrindjeri heritage.

The design will be worn by all three of Adelaide’s teams including AFLW and SANFL on multiple occasions across the year.

The overarching theme of the guernsey is connection and the artwork includes the names of all of Adelaide’s past and present Indigenous players, celebrating their contributions to the Club, the game, and the wider community.

Artwork Collaboration by Letisha Ackland, Elijah Ware and Shane Cook

Front of Guernsey
The Coloured Dots represent
Red – The Women | The blood of the club – All men come from women
Blue – The Men’s Team – The history of the club
Teal / Light Blue – The Juniors – The young men and young women – The next generation.

The White Circle and Dots in the Coloured dots – Lower part of the Guernsey
All players, coaches, team managers, support team, trainers for each playing group.
Meeting together as one club.

The White Circles and Stripes – Upper part of the Gunersey
X Convenience Oval – The iconic, largest oval in the SANFL competition and place for community
to come together on game days
The lines from all playing groups meeting together on the Bulldogs’ home ground
The dots in the middle of the oval represent the playing group going into the game with the
Club values – TEAM FIRST, EMBRACE, CHALLENGE AND CELEBRATE with the YIELD to
NONE brand of footy.
The stripes represent the white picket fence and community. Our home ground is where our
supporters come and watch in support. A place for the community to feel welcomed and at
home.

Back of Guernsey
The Premierships and Magarey Medallists
The Bright Stars – Representing all the Bulldog Premierships and the Magarey Medallists
1 Red Star – The Women’s Premiership 2023
9 White stars – The Men’s Premierships 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2001, 2000
1 Gold Star – The Magarey Medal 2023, 2004, 1989, 1984, 1979, 1965
Acknowledging the Magarey Medal sits with the club and was won by Harry Grant in 2023

North Adelaide’s First Nations guernsey was designed by players Hamish and Kobe Collins and past player Monica Turner-Collins (Anmatyerr/Arrernte people).

The intricate patterns and symbols are a tribute to the rich heritage of the First Nations people.

Each pathway signifies a story, a tradition, or a shared experience, emphasising the importance of every individual player and community in the larger tapestry of our nation. The connections depicted in the design highlight the inclusivity and solidarity between First Nations and non-First Nations communities.

By bringing these diverse paths together in a harmonious design, the guernsey stands as a beacon of unity and reconciliation. It embodies the spirit of coming together, recognising our shared history, and moving forward with mutual respect and understanding. This guernsey is more than just a piece of clothing; it is a celebration of our collective identity and a reminder of the strength we gain from embracing our differences and walking together on the path to a shared future.

Norwood’s First Nations Round guernsey was designed by SANFLW player Tesharna Maher and was also worn in the inaugural Hostplus SANFLW League First Nations Round last year.

Tesharna is a Western Aranda, Yankunytjatjara Pitjantjatjara , Yamaitji (Fathers’ side), Kokatha and Gurrinji  (mothers side) woman.

“I was born in Darwin on Larrakia Land and regularly travel through Alice Springs (Arrernte Land) to spend time on my homelands before eventually arriving back on Kaurna Land – my final destination in my journey so far.

“My family moved to SA because my dad was playing footy down here so I have lived most of my life in Adelaide, but I have a strong connection to the Northern Territory.”

The design includes the story of Tesharna’s journey from Darwin to Adelaide as a child, her totem (the Willie Wagtail), the ‘big meeting place’ – Norwood Football Club and oval – and the other SANFL clubs.

“My totem dreaming is the Willie Wagtail,” she said.

“I come from a long line of cultural knowledge that was passed down from my grandmother’s country – Ntaria (Hermannsburg). When we are born we are assigned an animal that depicts our spiritual knowledge to the country (Pmarra).

“As a child I showed and still do show significant resemblance to the Willie Wagtail, its movements and traits.  Showing these traits shows how powerful my culture is.

“My totem is known to travel a lot and is a highly spiritual bird that has strong connections to Uluru, where my great great grandmother Auguste was born.  I have been told many stories from my grandmothers, that I would show up to their houses and tap on their windows to let them know I was outside.”

Port Adelaide is proudly being known as the Yartapuulti Football Club again in 2024 for all games played during Sir Doug Nicholls Round, AFLW Indigenous Round and the SANFL First Nations Round. Yartapuulti is the Kaurna translation for ”Yarta” which means place or land and ”Puulti” which means sleep or death, which is the name the Kaurna people gave the land around the Port River.

This year’s striking strip, inspired by the essence of family, was a collaboration between two-time premiership player, Norm Smith Medallist and 200-game player, Byron Pickett, and his first cousin Melanie Pickett. 

The guernsey depicts Byron’s strong connection to family, to the land, and to the Port Adelaide region, as well as the seven current First Nations Yartapuulti AFL players. 

“To get asked to do the design for this great club is…I’m a pretty humble guy, I like to think I am, and I was just over the moon when they asked me to design it,” Byron said. 

“It (the design) is about family. I’m really big on family. I’ve always put family before myself, it’s just what I’ve been taught by my father, my mother, and my older sister.” 

The guernsey design is centred around three round symbols, while the Port River forms the traditional Yartapuulti ‘V’ shape across the chest.  

“The rivers represent the Port River, the home of Yartapuulti and my football journey,” Byron said.  

“The animal prints on the side of the guernsey are my totems. The bird footprint is the pee wee, that’s my Nyoongar totem on my dad’s side. And the dog print is a dingo (ngubanu), and that’s my mum’s totem on the Yamatji side.  

“The background represents my father; he did a painting a while ago with that design on it.  

“My dad is no longer with us today, and I just thought because I am really family orientated man, I wanted to include that as a representation of my father.”  

Three round shapes sit at the centre of the guernsey and represent three meeting places of great significance to Byron. 

“The main shape is Alberton Oval and the smaller shapes around it represent the seven current First Nations Yartapuulti players, plus one that represents me.  

“The top shape is a place called Mount Magnet (Budimia) that’s where my mum is from, and the bottom shape is where my dad is from Quairading (Balardong) down south in Western Australia.  

“There are three ‘U’ shapes on the back of the guernsey. The teal one is my granddaughter, Zaylera, and the two others are the boys, my two grandsons Z’kye and Zyree. 

Proud Narungga and Kaurna man, Wayne Buckskin, designed Tura Pukinangku, which translates to Shadows of the Past. The design honors First Nations players, both past and present, who wear the South Adelaide guernsey.

Drawing inspiration from the iconic South Adelaide guernsey of the early 1960s, the design features the SA monogram from that era and pays tribute to the 17 distinguished First Nations players who have represented South Adelaide at the men’s league level. Seventeen circles, each with symbol for a man in the centre, celebrate their brotherhood and connection.

The guernsey incorporates 11 ceremonial circles on the front and back, commemorating the club’s 11 Premierships since 1876. Additionally, 23 local gum leaves on the back signify the diversity of the 23 distinct South Australian Aboriginal language groups, adding cultural richness and emphasising the club’s deep connection with the South Australian community.

The back of the guernsey also features the Kaurna Shield alongside the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags, acknowledging the significance of the next two rounds.

Sturt’s 2024 First Nations Round guernseys have been designed by Eastern Arrarnte man and Graphic Artist, Pat Caruso.

Men’s Guernsey
Three semi-circles at the top of central circle represent the club’s committee and members. Sturt Football Club is the central source of interest.

The black lines leading to the main circle represent the veins of the River Murray flowing. People travelling along the river as a source of life for food and nourishment. The dots in between the black lines represent the people within the club’s catchment area. These dots are significant as they are also representative of the club’s genetic code: ”Blue Genes.” ”Blue Genes like our culture, it’s in our DNA.”

The black semi circles in the bottom corners of the guernsey represent communities of past generations feeding strength to the club. It also symbolises receiving recognition and new life from current players and generations.

On the back at the base of the guernsey, the Kaurna shield and people sitting acknowledges that Sturt Football Club is on Kaurna country. It is a symbol of protection, ancestors watching your back, like your teammates.

Women’s Guernsey
The main Sturt Football Club logo on the front has incorporated change. Cultural change allows the club to be honest in moving forward, breaking barriers and using its voice to create change.

The large circles to the bottom and right of the main logo represent the battle of each week, playing home and away games. The larger circle is Unley Oval, surrounded by the stars, who are all supporters.

The feet to the left of the main logo represent the development squads stepping forward to represent the club, tom come through the programs and aspire to continue their journey with us. Aiming to play as senior players and ultimately in a Grand Final.

At the bottom left of the guernsey is the Seven Sister Story which recognises the women who will wear the guernsey. Strong women who will stay strong moving forward, together using the weaving symbols to connect to the wind, the rain and clouds moving forward to future seasons.

The stars at the bottom left of the guernsey act as a compass for First Nations people throughout the night to hunt or move north. The importance of this is not to be lost in the dark and to use the stars to find your way north.

On the back, the kangaroo symbol is the movement of moving forward. Kangaroos can’t move backwards because of their tails. This represents the players and coaches moving forward during the season.

On the back at the base, the symbol of weaving represents the strength of moving together as one. Three elements are shown here – the players, coaches and supporters are moving like the wind, rain and clouds.

Designed by U18 West Adelaide player Ky Burgoyne, the son of Port Adelaide and Hawthorn premiership player Shaun Burgoyne.

Front of Guernsey
The nine circles in the middle of the sash represent the number of premierships won by West Adelaide Football Club. The white dots within these circles represent the players who played in a grand final. The sash represents the West Adelaide journey. The black dots represent everyone who has ever worn a West Adelaide guernsey. The white symbols on the outside represent the indigenous men who have played for West Adelaide, with the red symbol on the outside representing the indigenous women who have played for the club.

Back of Guernsey
The red circle represents our home ground at Richmond (Hisense Stadium). The white dots in the red circle represent all West Adelaide employees. The sash represents the West Adelaide journey. The black dots on the sash represents players coming and going, while the white dots on the sash represent the employees coming and going.

Woodville’West Torrens’ First Nations Round Guernsey was designed by Eagles’ SANFLW player and proud Barkindji woman, Channi Mitchell.

The guernsey represents our club slogan ‘One Club, One Culture’ and my story and journey to the Woodville-West Torrens Football Club.

My Journey/Murray River

The Murray River on the outside represents where I’m from, Mildura, Victoria.

My story/journey starts from Mildura in Victoria where I grew up my whole life to where I am now, living in Adelaide and playing for the Woodville West Torrens Football Club. For me, to reach and follow my dream of playing at high-level footy one day was to make the big decision to move away from family/home to live in Adelaide full-time.

Family means everything to me and to make to big move to Adelaide not knowing anyone here was very challenging and daunting. When I first came to the Woodville-West Torrens Football Club, I knew this was where I wanted to play footy and was very lucky to call it home. The support and care from everyone at the club, welcoming me into the Eagles family is something I will forever be grateful for.

Men’s Program / Women’s Program / Wheelchair Program/Supporters/Staff/Coaches/Volunteers

The three gathering circles play a massive part in this story as it represents who and what we are as a football club. Representing all our programs – women’s, men’s, and wheelchair. And most importantly our staff members, coaches, supporters, volunteers, and everyone who has been a part of this club past and present. We are ONE CLUB, and we are ONE CULTURE.

Person Symbol/Strong Woman Symbol

Both of these symbols in the design represent me. From a quiet, shy, young Aboriginal girl from a small country town, to now a proud, and strong Aboriginal woman. Along my journey shares the hardships and accomplishments I’ve had along the way to getting to where I am now in life. I never would have thought of being here today, a part of this amazing club sharing my story. Growing up in a small country town it’s always hard to move away, especially from a place where you grew up your whole life and always thought of never leaving. Being a proud Aboriginal woman living out my dream and doing what I love hopefully shows my community back home that anything is possible. I want to be that role model for my mob back home and show them to always follow their dreams.

Wedge Tail Eagle

This is the centrepiece of the design. It represents the Woodville-West Torrens club logo, the Eagle. It also represents my totem from the Barkindji Mob, from NSW.