Where once dark clouds swarmed, Dylan Pietsch now closed his eyes and saw dots. It was 2020 and the Western Force and Wallabies winger was painting the boots of each of his Australian rugby sevens teammates before the Tokyo Olympic Games. Thousands upon thousands of dots, the songlines of Pietsch’s ancestors: forests and flood plains, rivers and water holes, all connecting back to his country and culture.

“Traditional art compels you to be present for each and every dot,” the 27-year-old Wiradjuri-Burray man says. “But after three days of dotting 30-odd footy boots my vision was swimming. Might’ve been the paint fumes … maybe the smell coming off those boots. But I knew I’d also left the intensity of rugby far behind and let my creativity and spirituality flow. Painting really keeps my head level.”

The year before, Pietsch’s world was upside down. Growing up in Riverina country in south-west New South Wales, Pietsch was a teenage star on the sevens circuit, travelling the world with the Australian side. But behind the scenes he was spiralling. Sleepless nights. Crying jags. Long walks in the wee hours. Lingering on bridges.

Those mental health battles and a 2019 suicide attempt are experiences Pietsch now shares with schools, charities and Indigenous communities all over the country. “People think professional athletes are hard-nosed and mentally strong but the truth is we’re as vulnerable as anyone,” he says. “I still deal with depression all the time but I’ve got my tools – my painting, meditation, journaling – to keep me grounded.

“As a man you feel like you have to hold it in and deal with it. But releasing it, telling family and friends what you’re going through, those discussions are really authentic. To get it off my chest was life-changing. Mental health still carries a stigma but if my speaking up can help one kid make some changes or protect themselves, I’m proud. I try to be a rubber band in life – often stretched but flexible enough to bounce back.”

In 2024, Pietsch became the 15th Indigenous man to wear the Wallaby gold. When he scored a sensational first try in Australia’s win over the British & Irish Lions in Sydney last year, he rose up with a celebration that lit a fire in the hearts of fans. Wearing a special Indigenous jersey he painted for the series Pietsch roared and launched an arrow – the Wiradjuri symbol of survival, resistance and connection.

The bounce-back was complete. For good measure, Pietsch then laid teeth-rattling tackles on Lions giants Tommy Freeman and Bundee Aki to inspire a 22-12 victory. “I love the physical side of rugby – making big hits, running over people, carrying on,” he says.

“It energises me, and I love how I can energise others. It’s how I’ve always been. Growing up, Dad was my coach, and he says I always tackled hard, played angry. That fire has always been in me. On the field I can let my emotions fly.”

Pietsch was still going viral for his Lion-taming feats when he became trigger-man for the Wallabies’ epic comeback over world champions South African in Johannesburg a fortnight later. Another flying try arrested a dire 22-0 deficit and ignited a famous 22-38 fightback. Australia had a new hero: aggressive, authentic and lightning-fast.

Alas, Pietsch had a broken jaw after coming off second best in a typically aggressive tackle on Springboks captain Siya Kolisi. Instead of dots, he was now seeing stars.

It made 2025 a year “full of broken bones and head spins”. Pietsch’s fracture – which required permanent installation of four metal plates and 18 screws into his jaw – segued into vertigo, delaying his Test return until October. “Three days in hospital and eight weeks wired up barely able to talk and eat,” he says. “I’m still numb and mumbling.”

Pietsch used the lay-off wisely, marrying his partner of six years, Ella Pietsch, who also plays for the Force, and expanding his art to canvases. One of his first commissions was for Wallabies and Force teammate Carlo Tizzano and his wife, Emma. It was an elaborate flamingo-pink work in which “the waterways of the places they grew up [Sydney and Perth] connect together to create a family circle.”

Art and rugby are “a way to give back and help people move forward,” Pietsch says. “I’ve always loved the game but there’s definitely been times when I’ve cared too much and let it control and overwhelm my life. Since connecting to culture through painting I’ve got the balance right. Win or lose, rugby can’t change me. I’m a freer spirit. Art has taught me that rugby is a way of being rather than a way of doing.”

Ahead of the 14-Test 2026 and a home World Cup in 2027, Pietsch has work to do. Australian rugby has plenty of star wingers: “Magic” Max Jorgensen, newly re-signed to the Wallabies for five years; cross-code phenomenon Mark Nawaquanitawase, wooed back to the 15-a-side game for 2027 after being NRL winger of the year in 2025; try-wiz Harry Potter, who scored within a minute of making his Waratahs debut last month; and ex-sevens speedster Corey Toole, the fastest man in Super Rugby.

But first they’ve got to get past Dylan Pietsch, a man whose art has given him wings on the rugby field, and whose past and future are written in the stars. And the dots.