Culture

Watch This High School Student Open An NRL Game With A Stunning Indigenous National Anthem

Australians all let us rejoice.

by Max Koslowski  12 May 2018
NRL Indigenous Anthem

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The NRL has kicked off this year’s Indigenous round with a stunning rendition of Advance Australia Fair sung in an Indigenous language and backed by traditional Indigenous instruments.

The anthem was sung by Rebecca Hatch, an Indigenous Australian student from Campbelltown Performing Arts High School. She performed the first verse of the national anthem in a traditional language, before switching to English for a second verse.

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The song kicked off the first round of the NRL’s Indigenous Round. According to the NRL’s website, the round aims to “highlight the significant contribution that Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander people make to rugby league both on and off the field”.

While around three percent of Australia’s population consists of Indigenous Australians, 12 percent of contracted NRL players are of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander background.

All 16 clubs wear Indigenous-themed jerseys for the round. But when it came to the Thursday night clash between the Tigers and the Cowboys, people were paying more attention to Hatch than they were to the actual players.

You can watch Hatch’s performance below.