Curtis Taylor opens up on his meeting with new ‘No. 1 North supporter’ Harry Styles
Harry Styles is one of the biggest names in music right now so it’s no surprise that North’s Curtis Taylor received a ‘nuts’ reaction after posting a photo to social media.
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When Harry met … Curtis?
It doesn’t quite have the same ring to it as a 80s rom-com, but it was a Kangaroo that sent social media into a tailspin with a single photo this week.
When Curtis Taylor posted a photo with global megastar Harry Styles – who was performing at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium – he said he never could have been prepared for what would come next.
A snap with Harry – whose name has quickly become as mononymous as, to liken to footy, Dusty and Buddy – it turns out, was a rare commodity.
For Taylor, there’s since been almost 18,000 likes, countless new followers and plenty of stick from his teammates – and even his coach.
“I wasn’t expecting it to do that, but I think it got onto some page of Harry’s and it just went kind of nuts,” Taylor laughed to the Herald Sun.
“In the last couple of days, I’ve definitely got ‘Harry’ (as a nickname).
“The boys were are as eager to know what happened and how it happened, as well. Everyone was a bit shocked when they saw the photo.
“Even Clarko himself asked. They were playing Harry Styles songs before our (team) meeting so they were taking a bit of the piss out of me. It was good fun.”
It “all happened very quickly” for Taylor, who is one of few locals to have enjoyed time – albeit brief – with Styles over the last week.
Close mate Jackson Wade, who had played golf at Royal Melbourne with Styles in the days prior to the Marvel Stadium shows and has a connection to Styles, called on Taylor to get to Docklands with a couple of North Melbourne jumpers in tow.
It was time to just “Keep Driving”. It was on.
“We finished up training on the Friday and suddenly it was happening … they just said bring a couple of jumpers – one for Harry and one for his godson – and a footy and we’ll go backstage and have a little meet with him and kick back there for a bit,” Taylor explains.
“It was a pretty low-key situation – he was getting ready to go on stage. It came together pretty quickly on the Friday, which was good.
“Jackson took his son Carter and myself and had a bit of fun and a bit of a chat. It was pretty cruisy.
“(Harry) definitely knew what (footy) was. We chatted to his security guys as well who said he very much knows what it is and he’s massively into his training and his fitness so he was pretty keen to get to know it.
“We said hello and how he’s going and a bit of ‘where to next’, then he went and got changed and we took a bit of a photo and presented the jumper.
“He was very thankful and I said ‘you’ll have to be the No. 1 North supporter now’.”
Wade was snapped on social media alongside Styles following their round on the sandbelt, with Taylor revealing his mate had claimed to have taken honours over the triple-Grammy winner.
“I was told Harry hit them quite well, but Jackson will claim that he got the chocolates,” he said.
North Melbourne plays the Western Bulldogs in one final hitout on Saturday before the season kicks off, which Taylor anticipates will mark a new chapter at Arden Street under new coach Alastair Clarkson.
“There’s been a big change-up and a great energy at the club since Clarko’s joined and the boys are really keen and excited to – even last week – get a good hit out against actual competition,” he said.
“To get into Round 1 and see what we can bring this season, we’ll definitely climb our way up the ladder. That’s the main focus. The energy has been something that I haven’t experienced in my five years at North, so it’s on the way up and hopefully we can keep going up.”
‘FIND YOUR WAY OUT’: ROOS BOSS’ WARNING TO THOMAS UPON RETURN
– Jon Ralph
North Melbourne has warned returning midfielder Tarryn Thomas his career is in jeopardy if he cannot change his troublesome behaviour in coming months.
Thomas on Monday returned to Arden Street as he continues a range of educational courses related to his offensive behaviour towards women.
Thomas is still ineligible for selection at AFL and VFL level and has missed a month of training so seems likely to miss the early rounds of the season.
Thomas stepped away from the Roos after the Herald Sun revealed a series of disturbing allegations from multiple women about harassing and intimidating behaviour.
But head of football Todd Viney said the club believed Thomas was better served by continuing his improvement at the club rather than isolated from his teammates and staff.
Viney said the club would continue to support Thomas but made clear players only received so many chances before they lost the right to play AFL.
“We hope that we are seen to be serious about what we are doing and that Tarryn understands he hasn’t acted to the level society expects. We are hoping that the people looking at this tonight see that we are putting things in place and taking it very seriously and we are trying to change behaviour more than anything,” he said.
“We are trying to help a 22 year-old become a man. Tarryn is a young guy who has made lots of mistakes and is learning what he can do to get better.
“In this environment you behave yourself into an AFL program and behave yourself out of an AFL program. So in simple terms, continue to display the wrong habits and you find your way out of the industry.”
Viney said the club’s decision to allow Thomas to return continued a theme of accountability and improvement for the young midfielder.
“He will concentrate on the programs we have put in place. We felt like it was best suited away from the club. He has educated himself, started doing some programs. There is still more work to be done,” Viney said.
“We are happy with his attitude and accountability to some of the things we have asked him to address. That is primarily towards his attitude to women and hei respect and responsibility towards them.
“We certainly don’t condone any of that type of behaviour and he needs to do some work to understand under pressure what has led him to use the type of language he has. So he’s back, we think the best way of controlling and helping Tarryn change his behaviour is to be part of the program.”
Viney said the club had pondered whether to delay Thomas’ return until after his next court appearance but decided he would be best helped within Arden Street.
“We have taken into a lot of consideration the court cases. We feel like a lot of this behaviour is going back nearly 12 months ago, previous to last year.
“We feel they are all wrapped up in a bundle of behaviours. We have put a plan in to address all of that. We think the things we have put in place are addressing the things he needs to address.
“He has been out of the program for a month. He has to continue to contribute to his programs, he will spend time away from the club after hours completing those programs.
“We need to see accountability in the way he talks about the experience. And he has got to catch up on a month’s work of training.”
Thomas was charged earlier this year with threatening to distribute an intimate image following a three-month investigation.
THOMAS’ RETURN TO KANGAROOS CONFIRMED
Chris Cavanagh
North Melbourne player Tarryn Thomas will return to the club on Monday, less than four weeks after stepping away amid allegations of inappropriate behaviour.
Players and staff were informed on Saturday that Thomas had been given the green light to return to training, but he will remain unavailable for match selection until his respectful behaviour program has been “completed to the satisfaction of the club”.
Thomas faced court on Thursday over allegations he violated a court order and is due to return to court again on March 2.
However, after the 22-year-old met with North Melbourne leaders this week it was decided that he should be allowed to return to training.
“The club’s strong position with Tarryn has been for him to focus on the program that supports behaviour change along with ensuring accountability and for Tarryn to take responsibility for his actions,” North Melbourne chief executive Jennifer Watt said.
“Disrespect towards women is completely unacceptable and its impacts can be far-reaching.
“We wanted to see a genuine commitment from Tarryn to address the behaviours that have led to the serious allegations made against him in recent months and we’ve seen that.
“Given his commitment to the program, and the remorse we’ve seen from him, we think it’s time to bring Tarryn back to the structure of the club environment.
“We won’t put a time frame on his return to play and we’ll continue to prioritise him completing his respectful behaviour program.”
Thomas said in a statement released by the Kangaroos that he would work hard to win back the respect of those at the club as well as the wider community.
“I’ve learnt a lot about myself over the past few weeks,” Thomas said.
“I’m working hard to improve my behaviour and language towards women and the programs I’m completing have really helped me.
“The club and my teammates have continued to support me and I hope to repay them, the club and our fans on my return.
“I’m still working through some legal issues and I’ll have more to say once they are behind me.”
Thomas engaged a personal trainer to help keep fit during his time away from Arden Street, after being stood down on February 1.
Thomas was charged in January with threatening to distribute an intimate image following a three-month Victoria Police investigation.
A former No. 8 draft pick, Thomas is contracted with the Kangaroos until the end of 2024.
North Melbourne faces West Coast in Round 1 on March 18.
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