On the eve of the club unveiling their Sir Doug Nicholls Round jumper that will be worn this Sunday, we look back at the six previous designs worn by the GIANTS.

2014 - Hunting Ground

Designed by Western Sydney artist Chris (Wirriimbi) Edwards, a descendant of the Gumbaynggirr people from Nambucca Heads in northern New South Wales, ‘Hunting Ground’ was worn by the GIANTS in round 11, 2014.

The design’s larger circles represent areas where Aboriginal men would go hunting together as one. 

“It’s about how the Aboriginal culture reflects on the game played today, how the men go out there today and play the game,” Edwards said.

“Back in the day the Aboriginal elders used to go out hunting for food and it reflects how the boys now go hunting to win a game.

“When they used to go hunting,  they would spread out  hunt in a S shape like a snake to cover more ground and come back to their tribe with greater food and greater quantities.

“The boys, when they run out, if they work together they come back with a greater prize, which is a win.”

2015 - The Five Rivers

Designed by Wagga Wagga’s Luke Penrith, a proud aboriginal man with ties to the Wiradjuri, Wotjobaluk, Yuin and Gumbaynggirr nations, ‘The Five Rivers’ was worn in their Sir Doug Nicholls round clash with Brisbane at GIANTS Stadium.

“Four of the rivers concentrate around greater Western Sydney, the Hawksbury to the north, Nepean to the west, Georges to the south and the Parramatta River that goes through the centre,” Penrith said about his design.

“The fifth river is the Murrimbigee River that goes through Canberra and through the Riverina.

“The hand is the hand of hope that a lot of people need, a hand up, not a hand out.

“There’s the Sydney Tower there from driving along the M4, you can see it pretty clearly.

“On the back of the jumper is also the meeting place of the GIANTS in Sydney Olympic Park and there are footprints along the river as rivers are significant to Aboriginal people.”

2016

The second guernsey designed by Luke Penrith, it was worn by the GIANTS for the 2016 Sir Doug Nicholls round (Round 10) against the Adelaide Crows at the Adelaide Oval.

“There are big footprints across the jumper which represent the GIANTS, the boomerangs through the middle of the jumper represents earning your stripes as a team,” Penrith said in explaining the design.

“They also symbolise the way the GIANTS are performing in flying high, playing hard and playing as a team.

“On the back is the Blue Mountatins and the sunset means you are looking at it and thinking did ‘I put in everything I wanted to today.’”

2017

Artist Rheanna Lotter, an indigenous woman from the Yuin Nation, created a stunning design for the 2017 Sir Doug Nicholls round, based off the club’s away jumper.

Featuring a white background with unique indigenous artwork in the middle of the letter 'G' a larger design covered the entire back of the jumper.

Lotter’s design represents coming together as one community linked by a love of footy, while the dots and hands artwork representing the stories of the Indigenous GIANTS players.

“The design centred around the 50 year anniversary of the referendum,” Lotter said. 

“In the middle, we’re all standing here in solidarity; Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. The lines coming in represent the journey over the 50 years that we’ve been on.

“The boomerangs represent the fight that indigenous people had to go on to get to the referendum and the hands resemble the impact of people on the journey. 

Zac Williams wore the number 67 on his back during the round 10 match against West Coast, paying tribute to the 50th anniversary of the 1967 Referendum.

2018 - Learning Together, Growing Together, Walking Together

This design was by Northern Territory born artist Nathan Patterson and was worn in Rounds 10 and 11 against Adelaide and the Gold Coast Suns.

“In the centre I have painted a meeting place/campfire representative of the club but also the Aboriginal community as a whole,” Patterson said of his design. 

“I have incorporated the four community pillars (harmony, health, education, employment), represented by the four ‘U’ shapes seated around the central meeting place. 

“Beyond the meeting place there are other campsites which symbolise the flow-on effects felt in community when these pillars are successfully applied.  

“I have also painted four sets of footprints. These speak of true reconciliation, walking together side by side to create a better future for generations to come.”

The jumper included an acknowledgement of country that ran along the outside of the collar.

2019 - Football Dreaming

This design was based on the artwork of Wiradjuri woman Leeanne Hunter with a focus on harmony, health, education and employment; the GIANTS’ four community pillars.

It was worn for the first time against Melbourne at the MCG in round 10 and again the following week at GIANTS Stadium against the Gold Coast Suns.

The oval on the front of the guernsey represents a football, while the hands represent the people – family, friends and staff of the club – who support the journey of all footballers who play for the GIANTS.

The two boomerangs that sit on the chest of the design are symbolic of the acknowledgement and connection to Indigenous culture, and pride in Aboriginality.  

On the back of the guernsey a large circle represents the club, the meeting place, where people gather in harmony and reconciliation, to be employed and to learn.

The flying boomerangs around the meeting place are symbolic of the constant movement of life and the game of football. 

The footprints walking to and from the meeting represent a footballer’s journey. They come to the club to work and learn, and they leave stronger and smarter than when they arrived. 

The 2020 Sir Doug Nicholls Round jumper will be unveiled on Wednesday, August 19 and available for purchase through the GIANTS shop.