AFL indigenous stars Lance Franklin, Chance Bateman, Leon Davis and Shannon Cox will help celebrate the NTFA's first-ever indigenous round of football this week. The NTFA has taken a leaf out of the AFL's book with the initiative and plans to honour the contribution of indigenous footballers to Northern and State football. "We are going to honour five former Aboriginal players who have made a significant contribution to football in Tasmania but more particularly to football in the NTFA," NTFA president Geoff Lyons said. A number of activities are planned for the week with the AFL indigenous stars taking a football clinic for indigenous kids at Aurora Stadium on Wednesday. The clinic will be followed by a dinner at which Tasmanian Aboriginal footballers in Eddie Thomas, Geoff Burgess, Neil Maynard, Derek Peardon and Darrel West will be inducted as legends of NTFA football. Former VFL-AFL Aboriginal great Sid Jackson will be guest speaker at the dinner. The NTFA indigenous round will culminate with a special luncheon before the Rocherlea and Longford match at Rocherlea on Saturday. The Rocherlea Football Club has about 17 indigenous footballers throughout its three grades. Neil Maynard will present the medal named in his honour to the best player on ground from the game. "The initiative came from Graeme Gardner, a Rocherlea committee member, and Aboriginal Land Council member, and it's just grown legs," Lyons said. "I don't know if any other association has ever done it. "It's a great idea which is important to the Aboriginal community as it is to the non- Aboriginal community." Gardner said that the NTFA indigenous round was an opportunity for people to reflect on the contribution of Aboriginal footballers who endured hardships to play the game and left their mark against the odds. "Hopefully it will raise awareness and encourage young Aboriginal players and other players to take the sport on," he said.