Australian colours

[robert63]

why was green and gold chosen as the australian colours

[Sludge]

Three colour combinations traditionally claim to be Australia's national colours: 
(1) red, white and blue; 
(2) blue and gold; and 
(3) green and gold.
Red, white and blue were featured in the first Coat of Arms of the Commonwealth in 1908 and are the colours of the Australian national flag.The colours blue and gold have heraldic significance as they are the colours of the crest in Commonwealth Coat of Arms. Green and gold gained wide popularity and acceptance in sporting events. The early use of the green and gold in Aussie sports was by a number of athletes in Australia's Olympic teams since 1908 and by the national cricket side since 1899 (via coloured piping on their white vests). The minor sports of soccer and baseball also took up the green and gold in the 1920s. In 1928 Rugby League became the first of the major football codes to use green and gold colours. The Kangaroos were also the first of all Australian sports to adopt the permanent use of a fully green and gold playing strip at 'Test' level. The following season saw the Kangaroos wear the green and gold for the first time overseas - in a Test match (5th of October 1929 against England at Craven Park, Hull) and in a tour match (7th of September 1929 against Rochdale Hornets) which was the first significant use of the Australia's famous 'green and gold' sporting colours internationally. Green and gold were proclaimed Australia's national colours by the Governor-General on 19 April 1984. Before this Australia had no national colours.

[Octavius]

As pointed out above, the 'National' colours of Australia are Red, White and Blue.

The 'Sporting' colours are Green and Gold. These are used in all international events.

For the full history of changing colours in Australian sport see here: http://rl1908.com/rugby-league/Colours.htm

[Sludge]

Green and Gold are the Australian National Colours :-

PROCLAMATION

Commonwealth of
Australia
N. M. STEPHEN
Governor-General

By His Excellency the
Governor-General of
the Commonwealth of
Australia
 
I, SIR NINIAN MARTIN STEPHEN, Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal ExecutiveCouncil, hereby declare -
.......
.......
.......

(e)
that green and gold (Pantone Matching System numbers 116C and 348C as used for printing on paper) shall be the national colours of Australia for use on all occasions on which such colours are customarily used.
 
GIVEN under my Hand and the Great Seal of Australia on 19 April 1984.
 
By His Excellency's Command,
M. J. YOUNG
Special Minister of State
 
GOD SAVE THE QUEEN! 

 
 

[graemer]

The short answer is they were chosen because they were said to remind people of the colours of the wattle tree.

[Sludge]

Actually the Australian national colours of green and gold are now said to be based on the colour of wattle foliage and flowers, but whether or not that was the thought behind the small green and gold piping which first appeared on sports clothes all those years ago and started it off nobody knows.