Seven Manly Sea Eagles players have withdrawn from a National Rugby League match in Australia because they鈥檙e unwilling to wear their club's Pride jersey.
The jersey has rainbow stripes and a rainbow collar 鈥 in place of the regular white sections 鈥 to support LGBTQ2S+ inclusion in sports, and the club plans to use it for one game against Sydney Roosters.
Sea Eagles coach Des Hasler on Tuesday said seven players advised club officials that wearing the Pride jersey conflicts with their cultural and religious beliefs.
鈥淭he players will not play on Thursday and we accept their decision,鈥 Hasler said. "These young men are strong in their beliefs and convictions and we will give them the space and support they require.
鈥淭he playing group are solid and understanding of each other鈥檚 views. As a club we will wear the jersey on Thursday night.鈥
Josh Aloiai, Jason Saab, Christian Tuipulotu, Josh Schuster, Haumole Olakau鈥檃tu, Tolu Koula and Toafofoa Sipley are not available for selection on Thursday. NRL squads contain 13 starting players and four on the interchange bench for each game.
Hasler apologized for the fallout which stemmed from the club鈥檚 lack of advance consultation with the playing group.
鈥淥ur intent was to be caring towards all diverse groups who face inclusion issues daily,鈥 Hasler said. 鈥淪adly this poor management has caused significant confusion, discomfort and pain for many people, in particular those groups whose human rights we in fact attempting to support.
鈥淲e wish to apologize to the LGBTQ community who embrace the rainbow colours, who use these colours for Pride and advocacy and human rights issues.鈥
Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V鈥檒andys said he understood the players鈥 choices, based on religious and cultural differences, but pushed for inclusion and acceptance in the sport.
鈥淥ne thing I take pride in with rugby league is we treat everyone the same," V鈥檒andys said. "It doesn鈥檛 matter your colour, sexual orientation or race. We鈥檙e all equal.
鈥淲e鈥檒l never take a backward step in having our sport inclusive. But at the same time we will not disrespect our players鈥 freedoms.鈥
The NRL does not have a designated Pride round, but V鈥檒andys said it could be a consideration for future seasons.
Andrew Purchas, co-founder of the Pride In Sport program that supports Australian sports clubs in aspects of inclusion, acknowledged the apology from the Sea Eagles.
鈥淐onversation, education and building understanding are key to respectfully moving forward on these important discussions in our communities,鈥 Purchas said in a statement. "At its most basic, a Pride jersey signals a fundamental value: everyone should feel safe to play.
鈥淲e strongly support the NRL in its endeavours to continue to uphold values associated with inclusivity, safety and belonging, and we would urge all people to think about these as non-controversial values we can unify around.鈥
The Sea Eagles are in ninth place in the NRL, one spot below the Roosters. The top eight teams qualify for the playoffs.
Manly was the only club planning to wear a Pride jersey in this round.
Former Manly forward Ian Roberts, who in the 1990s was the first high-profile rugby league player to come out as gay, said he was not surprised by the players鈥 decision.
鈥淚t hasn鈥檛 totally shocked me like it鈥檚 shocking everyone else,鈥 he told the Sydney Morning Herald. 鈥淎s an older gay man I鈥檓 used to this. I expected there would be some sort of religious pushback.鈥
The jersey boycott dominated coverage of the NRL after it was reported late Monday by Sydney's Daily Telegraph, with criticism both for the boycott and for the club's lack of consultation with players.
The newspaper said players were not aware they would be expected to wear the jersey until after it was shown to the media.
NRL rules would not allow the players to wear an alternate jersey without the rainbow messaging because match regulations require all players in a team to wear an identical strip.
The Pride jerseys were a hit with fans, with local media reporting the club had sold out of initial stock of all men's and women's sizes.
Players in other sports previously have refused to wear jerseys with advertising or messages which conflict with their beliefs. In 2016, cricketer Fawad Ahmed was allowed to play in a jersey which did not carry the logo of the Australian team鈥檚 beer sponsor because of his objection to alcohol for religious reasons.
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