How Andy Muirhead is helping the Brumbies pave an Indigenous pathway

It's about building an Indigenous pathway program that will be "set in stone for a long period of time after I leave".

A new contract keeps the Brumbies winger in Canberra until the end of 2024. The fact he wants to stay is no surprise - the dazzling winger has made no secret of his love of the club and the city.

The Brumbies sit second on the Super Rugby Pacific ladder leading into a top of the table clash with the Auckland Blues at Canberra Stadium on Saturday.

But the extra incentive is a program the Brumbies have launched for Indigenous talent who may once have feared they would slip through the cracks in the rugby union pathway.

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"There are some good things in the pipeline in terms of a pathways program for Indigenous males and females, and I just thought it was quite fitting for me to stick around and help get that up and running, and hopefully have something that's set in stone for a long period of time after I leave," Muirhead said.

"That was one of the factors of me staying, to help with that. It was quite a quick thing, we kicked it off at the start of this year.

"We had three men come in for a two-week period. That went really well, we got Dylan McLachlan, he's now in the academy and playing for Royals as well.

"Towards the end of the year we'll have a handful of boys and girls come into the program. At the moment we're looking to see how that looks and we're doing some scouting. It's really exciting.

"There's obviously a lot of talent out there and I'm really looking forward to seeing what we can come up with at the end of the year, and what talent and product we can put in front of the coaches' eyes here and they can make a bit of a statement saying 'we want to get some more guys and girls in the program'."

That would be part of Muirhead's legacy. Just like the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags on the Brumbies' Indigenous jersey as the club marks cultural round.

On the back of the jersey are the flags of Australia's First Nations people, which are now free to be used on clothing.

Up until January, non-Aboriginal-run business WAM Clothing held a monopoly on the Aboriginal flag thanks to an exclusive licensing agreement with the flag's copyright owner Harold Thomas.

Cease and desist letters landed in mailboxes of those who used the flag on merchandise and the movement to free the flag was born.

Muirhead had a box of "Free The Flag" shirts delivered last year and handed one to every Brumbies player. They wore them at training and out in public, adding their weight to a cause that meant so much.

So when Muirhead glances at the Brumbies' new Indigenous jersey, it means something more.

"You see these things on a bit of paper and you design it, but until you get it in your hands you don't really know what it's going to look like," Muirhead said.

"It's always a bit of excitement and a bit of nerves to know what it looks like in hand. This year's jersey has turned out unreal and to be able to have the flags on it this year is pretty special. We haven't been able to have that in a few years.

"We spoke about it last year, those issues, and it's obviously been somewhat resolved."

SUPER RUGBY PACIFIC ROUND 14

Saturday: ACT Brumbies v Auckland Blues at Canberra Stadium, 7.45pm. Tickets from Ticketek. Broadcast live on Stan Sport.

Brumbies team: 1. Scott Sio, 2. Folau Fainga'a, 3. Allan Alaalatoa, 4. Darcy Swain, 5. Cadeyrn Neville, 6. Tom Hooper, 7. Luke Reimer, 8. Pete Samu, 9. Nic White, 10. Noah Lolesio, 11. Andy Muirhead, 12. Irae Simone, 13. Len Ikitau, 14. Tom Wright, 15. Tom Banks. Reserves: 16. Billy Pollard, 17. James Slipper, 18. Sefo Kautai, 19. Nick Frost, 20. Rory Scott, 21. Ryan Lonergan, 22. Hudson Creighton, 23. Ollie Sapsford.

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