50 Years of Deadly: Picking the greatest Indigenous players of the last 50 years

Indigenous players have provided rugby league fans with some of the game’s most iconic moments.

You only have to take your mind back to March this year when South Sydney’s Alex Johnston became the most prolific try scorer in premiership history. The scenes at Allianz Stadium that night will live on in the memory of everyone who witnessed them.

Johnathan Thurston produced a similarly iconic moment in 2015 with his unforgettable extra-time field goal to secure the Cowboys’ maiden premiership. And who could forget Greg Inglis’ miraculous effort to retrieve a ‘live’ ball from beyond the dead-ball line to create a try for Mark Gasnier in the Centenary Test of 2008.

Fans with longer memories recall the brilliance of Dragons’ duo Anthony Mundine and Nathan Blacklock and their backflipping try celebrations of the 1990s, while others remember the craft of five-eighth Cliff Lyons and how he helped rescue the Ashes for the Kangaroos in 1990.

In the female space there is no more iconic image than Jaime Chapman striding to an 80-metre try at Suncorp Stadium in Game 1 of the 2024 women’s Origin series.

Indigenous players have made their mark on the game for more than a century. New research by Western Suburbs historian Brent Knowles reveals that George Swanson, a halfback who played two first grade games for Wests in 1917, was likely the first Indigenous player to appear at premiership level.

Knowles’ meticulous research connects Swanson’s heritage to Bungaree, who was Chief of the Broken Bay tribe in the early 1800s and later King of the Sydney Aboriginals.

• Have your say: Head to WWOS to vote for the best Indigenous player of the last 50 years.
• Click here to view the Men's nominees
• Click here to view the Women's nominees

The emergence of further players of Indigenous heritage was gradual. In the 1930s and 1940s brothers Dick and Lin Johnson made their mark at several Sydney clubs, and both represented New South Wales. By 1960, Lionel Morgan made history when he became the first Indigenous player to represent Australia, while Arthur Beetson took it up a notch when he captained the Kangaroos in 1973, becoming the first Indigenous person to lead an Australian sporting team.

Over the past 50 years, the trickle of Indigenous players has become a torrent of talent and First Nations players are sprinkled liberally through the playing ranks of every NRL and NRLW club in the country.

Fans cheer the great moments of our Indigenous stars when they feature on television highlights reels and often, they spark wider conversations about the Greatest of All Time. Moments are one thing, but true greatness is another subject altogether.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of NAIDOC week, Nine’s Wide World of Sports has collaborated with the NRL to determine the greatest Indigenous player of the past 50 years. To acclaim “50 Years of Deadly”, shortlists were prepared of the greatest Indigenous men’s and women’s players of the period 1976-2026.

From there a judging panel voted on their choice for best men’s and women’s players. Their selections will carry a 70 per cent weighting towards the eventual outcome. The other 30 per cent will be determined by a public vote. Now it is up to you to cast your vote for the Greatest Indigenous Men’s and Women’s players of the last 50 years.

The Judging Panel

The Judging Panel was comprised of ARLC Commissioner Professor Megan Davis AC, Sydney Morning Herald journalist Roy Masters AM, Nine Commentator Phil Gould AM, Kangaroos coach Kevin Walters, Jillaroos coach Jess Skinner and NRL historian and Nine statistician David Middleton.