There was a time Ron Griffiths was just another face sitting behind the familiar look to the coaching staff at NRL clubs.

But the Indigenous figure is now standing out to represent a generation of the best of Koori and Murri masterminds to play the game.

The man in charge of the Newcastle NRLW team in its second season wants to set an example of what Aboriginal people can do in coaching roles.

"We want to be showing the aspiring Aboriginal coaches out there that it is possible," Griffiths said.

"Our job is to kick the door open for the next lot of coaches when they come through and I think that's pretty important."

Euahlayi man and South Sydney Rabbitohs head of performance Travis Touma is the closest to the mob it gets to coaching in the NRL.

That uncomfortable truth was apparent to Griffiths prior to stepping aside this season from an assistant role to Michael Maguire after a taste of coaching with Wests Tigers.

The three years at Leichhardt was hard work as he juggled the gig with his income-earning work in the Hunter coal mines.

"I'm very grateful for that opportunity," Griffith said.

"But I'm very excited for what lies ahead."

Some 13 per cent of men and 15 per cent of women at the elite level of the game are First Nations players, significantly higher than the 3.3 per cent of the Indigenous population that makes up Australia.

Yet that strong representation is yet to make its way into the coaching boxes of the 16 NRL clubs.

"That is extremely important for us because we need to put support mechanisms in place for our Aboriginal players," Griffiths said.

"I mean we have some of the most talented footballers running around, of Aboriginal men and women.

"Unfortunately, at this point in time, there is not enough Aboriginal coaches in the game to justify that (imbalance)."

But the NRLW, where St George-Illawarra's Jamie Soward and Parramatta's Dean Widders ply their trade, is a different space.

Every one of the six women's sides includes a First Nations' staffer in a leadership role.

Assistant coaches Jess Skinner (Knights), Darren Borthwick (Eels) and Bo de la Cruz (Broncos), in addition to Titans strength and conditioning coach Jayden Chadburn, and Roosters physiotherapist Melinda Dennis are paving this new path.

Amid all the pressure Knights NRL coach Adam O'Brien is facing, Griffiths, a Maitland local, is just pleased to test out his methods before looking too far ahead.

"Wherever I am coaching, it doesn't matter," he said.

"I just love the art of coaching, whether it's kids' football, the Aboriginal Knockout or at the NRL level.

"We need to be a bit sensitive about that last one because I have only just joined the NRLW, and I don't want to start saying I want to be an NRL coach just now."

The coaching pedigree of Griffiths began in the backyard most afternoons after school under his dad's close scrutiny and advice continued around the kitchen table at night.

But legendary Newcastle All Blacks player-coach Rick Griffiths left the most stirring speeches for inside the sheds on match days.

They reverberated louder for an impressionable son.

"There is a lot of things that I learned, but I suppose coaching is about understanding your role and a lot of it is around managing players and how to best do that," Griffiths said.

But the life lessons from a father, an Aboriginal activist, and one of the last Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commissioners, proved greater than any playbook tactics.

It carried into the philosophies the Knights coach applies on and off the field which have earned respect from Indigenous communities.

Since injury ended his playing career aged 24, coaching has led Griffiths to mentor under-16 New South Wales Koori teams.

The biggest honour was came year from Laurie Daley listing Griffiths alongside Justin Hodges, Matt Bowen and Ken Nagas on the Indigenous All-Stars staff.

"I think everything above all else that to be able to work with your mob is something that you're always going to be extremely proud of to get the opportunity to do that," Griffiths said.

The immediate focus is setting out an example ahead of Newcastle facing Brisbane on Sunday in his own NRLW debut.

After a winless debut season, Griffiths has signed on new captain Millie Boyle and Indigenous star Tamika Upton.

"There was great learning from the first season, but there was also some foundations put in place," he said.

"The big thing for us that we're just looking to put in some performances this year that our club and the community will be proud of - that's the most important thing.

"If we walk away from the end of the year and our players have not only better their rugby league skills, but a better understanding of themselves, as we have also done some good personal development, it will be a success for us."

Story by Andrew Mathieson