Ugly feud erupts between Corey Parker and Josh Aloiai over Manly pride jersey
The pride jersey scandal continues to limp on with a fiery feud kicking off over one comment by Manly star Josh Aloiai.
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The pride jersey scandal continues to limp on with a feud erupting between Manly prop Josh Aloiai, one of seven players to boycott the rainbow strip, and NRL great Corey Parker.
The war of words kicked off on Wednesday night with Aloiai calling Parker “an idiot” for suggesting the Manly Seven were hypocrites for refusing to wear the pride jersey in their Round 20 match against the Roosters.
“Corey Parker, he came and said we shouldn’t pick and choose,” Aloiai told Nine News.
“He hammered us in the media, (saying) we run out with our gambling sponsored jerseys and betting-sponsored stadium.
“I would love for him to show me in the Bible where it mentions gambling. It doesn’t, nor does it forbid alcohol within itself. He’s an idiot.”
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Parker, who played 347 games for the Broncos, 19 for the Maroons and 16 for Australia, was never going to take that comment lying down.
Now a Fox Sports NRL expert, Parker took another crack at Aloiai on Thursday, saying his argument “didn’t make sense”.
“I saw the interview and Aloiai is entitled to his opinion,” Parker told The Courier Mail.
“To be honest, he didn’t make sense.
“Since that day, those guys cost their club a chance to play semis and they got their head coach (Des Hasler) sacked, it’s all off the back of that (gay-pride issue).”
Parker then hammered the 26-year-old Manly forward over his perceived lack of support for his sister, who Aloiai revealed is gay.
Aloiai said: “Me and her (have a tight relationship) and she knows that I love her to bits.
Josh Aloiai reveals all about the jersey drama and whether or not he'll wear the jersey next year. 🦅#9WWOS#NRLpic.twitter.com/CuYjK1cO5u
— NRL on Nine (@NRLonNine) October 25, 2022
“Throughout all this happening, we did have a chat and she totally understood where I was coming from.
“She rang me up and was like: ‘How are you going? You all right? It’s so crazy the way the media has blown this out of proportion.’”
However Parker was bemused by Aloiai’s “contradictory” stance and his perceived lack of support for his sister.
“Some of his comments are contradictory. Like, he said his sister is gay. His own sister. He grew up in a household where his sibling was gay and he won’t wear the jersey ... what is that?” Parker said.
“How would she feel about his stance?
“It’s just garbage and now he is saying he will do it again next year. Do these guys not realise who pays the bills and who pays their wages?”
Aloiai also revealed this week he and his family received death threats in the wake of the decision to boycott the jersey – a call that left Manly’s season into turmoil.
“(We received) death threats, my family got threats, I got threats about my son,” Aloiai said.
“You should never be put in a situation where your religious views or cultural views and beliefs conflict with your job.
“Our atheist boys, for Easter round, we wanted to wear a Christian jersey and they weren’t comfortable in doing that. It’s all the same – I will support them.”
Aloiai was asked whether he and his teammates’ stance was disrespectful to the LGBTIQ community, the Manly prop said he had only respect for people who choose that life.
“We still have nothing but respect for people that choose to live that way of life,” he said.
“We personally don’t want to live that way or endorse it but, at the same time, we quietly took our stance and didn’t say anything hateful or hurtful.
“Instead we were the ones that were called everything under the sun.”
The Sea Eagles ended their 2022 campaign with seven consecutive losses in the wake of jersey scandal, missing out on finals and sparking rumours of discontent within the Manly camp.
The players in question were Aloiai, Jason Saab, Christian Tuipulotu, Josh Schuster, Haumole Olakau’atu, Tolutau Koula and Toafofoa Sipley.
So far the players, who boycotted the jersey on religious and cultural reasons, have indicated they will continue to not play in rounds where the Sea Eagles don a rainbow jersey in the future.
Originally published as Ugly feud erupts between Corey Parker and Josh Aloiai over Manly pride jersey
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