The Capital Spirit will proudly don their inaugural Indigenous Dress for this week’s Origin Energy Premier League games at Netball Central.
The expansion franchise, which joined the competition in 2020, had the dress designed as a dedication to the Ngunnawal people, the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the Land where the team is based in the ACT.
With this week also doubling as the competition’s Indigenous Round, the Spirit wanted to tell a story about where they come from. The dress has been designed by Spirit U23s players Thalia Uilelea and Scarlett Kris, and Opens player Olivia Clark.
The pair looked to incorporate the team’s colours which are derived from the Royal Bluebell (the state flower of ACT) and the Brindabella Ranges.
The Netball ACT State League competition which most of the Spirit’s athletes compete in on Friday nights, is made up of six districts - Queanbeyan, Arawang, Tuggeranong, Canberra, Belconnen and South Canberra – and all are represented by a meeting circle in the bottom left corner.
The water which flows diagonally across the front of the design represents Lake Burly Griffin and all the bodies of water that connect the team’s districts. The water elements of the dress also include Torres Strait Islander patterns and colours which acknowledge those communities living on Ngunnawal land.
Each animal on the design also has a special meaning; the Bogong Moths were used by Ngunnawal ancestors as a source of protein, keeping them nourished and strong.
The design also features the totems of the three First Nations players in the 2021 teams (Uilelea, Clark and Scarlett Kris).
“My people are the Wiradjuri people of central New South Wales and I am proud to wear my totem the sand goanna,” Uilelea said.
“It was such an honour to design the Spirit’s first Indigenous Round dress and represent my heritage but most importantly leave a legacy for more indigenous athletes who come through the ACT and surrounding regions.”
“As a proud Kamilaroi woman, having an opportunity to wear an Indigenous dress that incorporates my totem as well as Scarlett’s and Thalia’s makes me so happy,” Clark added.
“It’s an honour to share our culture and the culture of the Ngunnawal people that we represent every Wednesday night.”
Kris said: “As a proud Islander woman, it’s amazing to see the support from the netball community towards Indigenous players.
“The dress is designed to touch more than one Indigenous culture, and represents strong totems from each.”
