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Buddy Franklin Will Wear Number 67 For The AFL Indigenous Round

The round will cover the 50th anniversary of the 1967 referendum.
Good on you, Buddy.
Steve Christo via Getty Images
Good on you, Buddy.

When Indigenous Aussie Rules superstar Lance 'Buddy' Franklin takes to the field for the Sydney Swans on Friday night, he'll be treating the match against Hawthorn as much more than business as usual.

This weekend not only marks the AFL's annual Indigenous round but will also commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1967 referendum which saw the Australian constitution amended to remove two discriminatory references to Indigenous Australians so that the Federal government could legislate in relation to them and so that they could be included in the national census.

And to mark the historic occasion, Buddy has announced he'll be swapping the number on his guernsey from his normal 23 to 67 in commemoration of the vote.

Franklin, who has always proudly represented his culture on and off the field, has said the Indigenous round "is very special" to him for recognising "exactly what Indigenous players bring to the game."

"Obviously having the Indigenous heritage means a lot to me," he said.

"To be able to play in Indigenous Round is very special, not only to me but everyone... What a night -- Friday night, Indigenous Round -- it is going to be a special one."

Proud to wear these boots for Indigenous round this week. Amazing artwork by @lpenrith #marngrook @adidasau 👣

A post shared by Buddy Franklin (@buddy_franklin23) on

Each year, the Indigenous round recognises the contribution Indigenous players bring to the sport and sees all 18 clubs in the league don special Indigenous-themed guernseys and gear to mark the occasion.

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