Telling detail in Manly’s pride jersey exposes the hollow protest of boycotting NRL stars

Seven players have refused to wear this jersey, choosing to sit out of a crucial match. One glaring detail shows how hollow their stance is.

The pride jersey at the centre of the Manly Sea Eagles controversy. Picture: Manly Digital

Comment

Here we go again. A group of footy players, citing their religious beliefs, are reviving the culture war previously fought by shunned rugby star Israel Folau by refusing to wear their team’s new pride jersey.

As many as seven players from the NRL club the Manly Sea Eagles have reportedly pulled out of their crucial Thursday night match against the Sydney Roosters because the club’s jersey for this round includes – prepare to clutch your pearls – some rainbow stripes.

The jersey some Manly players don’t want to wear. Picture: Manly Digital

Here is the message those stripes are supposed to send, as explained by Tyler Rakich, whose apparel company Dynasty Sport partnered with Manly on the design.

“Sport is one of those great things where people come together from all walks of life and participate in something without exclusion. This jersey is a celebration of that,” Mr Rakich said today.

“The design itself maintains the iconic Manly DNA with the striped design and maroon, but with the subtle inclusion of the rainbow colours, which are a nod to inclusivity for everyone in league.”

“The Sea Eagles have such a rich and diverse history in rugby league and in the community,” added Manly’s interim CEO, Gary Wolman.

“We are pleased to be able to share such an important message that means so much to many people in the community.”

So here we have a footy club that recognises its influence in the community, and is using that influence to make people feel welcome, included and accepted.

Imagine being so opposed to that message, and considering it so incompatible with your beliefs, that you are willing to throw your teammates under the bus by sitting out your club’s most important game of the season.

I’m not exaggerating there. The Sea Eagles and Roosters are both fighting for spots in the bottom half of the top eight; the result on Thursday night could decide which team ends up making the finals.

But that’s not the point, is it? These young men would be just as wrongheaded if it were a round one game, or a meaningless trial match.

No doubt we are about to hear a great deal of rhetoric about freedom of speech and religion, both of which are important elements of a liberal society.

We will hear that each member of the Manly Seven is being discriminated against for trying to uphold the moral teachings of his faith.

Curious, isn’t it, that these moral teachings are so often, so obsessively focused on what people do in the privacy of their own bedrooms, harming precisely nobody. One could be forgiven for thinking there are a bigger concerns.

Consider another, rather telling detail in the jersey that has offended the players in question. Between two of the rainbow stripes, in huge white lettering, is the name of Manly’s major sponsor: PointsBet.

None of the rebels, in their great moral fervour, have expressed any qualms about promoting gambling, despite its corrosive effect on those who become addicted. The word PointsBet has been plastered across their chests all season.

Nor have they objected to their home ground bearing the name of a brewery, when alcoholism destroys so many lives.

Heck, less than two years ago, what is now 4 Pines Park was officially called Lottoland. Not a peep of protest about that.

But welcoming gay people into rugby league – that goes too far. That is outrageous. How dare Manly show support for boys and girls who dream of playing the sport, but worry they’ll be bullied or ridiculed because of who they are.

You read about the intended meaning of the pride jersey earlier. No one is being asked to dress in leather and attend a Mardi Gras parade. No man is being compelled to run around with the words “I like gay sex” on his chest.

It is simply a message that everyone is welcome in rugby league.

By rejecting it, these players are treating those youngsters with scorn. The implicit message from them is: you are not welcome. You are not accepted. Get out of our sport.

It is a hateful attitude, and the fact that its origin lies in scripture makes it no less hurtful to those who might endure it.

Oh look, gambling is promoted on the back of the jersey as well. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

I will concede one point to the players here: Manly should have consulted them during the design process. It was reported on Monday evening that some of them only found out about the jersey through the media. It absolutely should not have happened that way.

But the argument we are already hearing from the anti-woke brigade, that the club is straying inappropriately into the realm of politics, is nonsense.

“How about sporting teams stick to sport and leave politics to those elected to do politics?” One Nation politician Mark Latham suggested, for example.

This point has been made a great many times before in previous debates, but as it has yet to sink in, we’d better repeat it: accepting people for who they are – something they were born with and cannot change – is not politics. It is NOT. POLITICS. It is basic human decency.

When religion is at its best, it inspires people to embody that decency; to be compassionate and kind and generous; to treat others with respect and help those in need. A great deal of good has been done in the name of religion.

And a great deal of harm. Because at its worst, religion can foment division, prejudice, and cruelty against those who don’t conform to its teachings.

It is saddening and more than a little infuriating that in 2022, in a liberal society such as ours, that sort of prejudice remains. But at least it is waning. Manly should be applauded for trying to do its part, however small.

It should be noted that most of the Manly players have no problem with the jersey. by the way. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Anyway.

The Manly rebels should be allowed to sit out this week’s game if they wish, and allowed to return to the line-up in the next round. They should not face sanction or suspension.

Their refusal to wear a jersey design imposed on them by their club, while disappointing, is distinct from what Folau did, going out of his way to post putrid, confrontational messages to gay people.

“WARNING homosexuals, HELL AWAITS YOU,” for example. Charming stuff.

But these young men should be criticised. Their views should be interrogated and tested. Otherwise, as a society, we are implicitly saying there is no problem with their attitude.

Meanwhile I want my club (the Roosters, who coincidentally stand to benefit from Manly’s turmoil here), to come up with its own equivalent jersey. And I want our players, all of them, to wear it proudly.

@SamClench