Former New South Wales coach Laurie Daley has backed future tours for the Indigenous All-Star Team but has stopped short of supporting the idea of them featuring at the World Cup.
Daley is coach of the All-Stars team for their upcoming showcase game this Saturday, which is expected to draw around 25,000 fans but believes the growth of the squad can't come at the detriment of the national side.
The former Kangaroo representative believes there is scope for the Indigenous All-Stars to go on tours of England and New Zealand, and against Pacific nations but said the World Cup should only feature one team from Australia.
“I personally believe you only need one Australian team, not two, at a World Cup, but I definitely think there’s an opportunity for this team to play a lot more games, including against the Pacific nations,” Daley said in a News Corp report.
“You could even have Indigenous tours over to England and New Zealand. It would be great to play more games, and we’d compete, don’t worry about that, there would be no worries there.”
Daley has reportedly embraced the unity dance to be possibly be performed by all Kangaroo players at this year's World Cup.
Former Melbourne and South Sydney Star Greg Inglis said that seeing an Indigenous team on show at such a global event would be terrific.
“I’m speaking for myself and my family, but I would love to see an Indigenous side on the world stage,” Inglis told the Sydney Morning Herald.
The Indigenous All-Stars take on the Maori All-Stars Saturday night at CommBank Stadium.
