A player suspended, a Pride match bumped: Is the AFL doing more harm than good?
6/2/202618 min
This weekend, there was supposed to be a special game played between the Sydney Swans and St Kilda. It was the teams' annual Pride match, in which the players would wear rainbow jerseys and celebrate diversity, the aim being to boost inclusivity for LGBTQ fans.
But for the first time in a decade, because of a far-reaching scandal involving Saints player Lance Collard, the Pride match was scrapped. Sydney opted to play the game against a different side, at a different time.
Today special correspondent Stephen Brook discusses the role that homophobic slurs play in footy and why the code’s attempts at cracking down on hate may be backfiring.
And just a heads-up, this episode contains offensive language.
Background reading
- The question that exposed a massive flaw in the AFL’s fight against homophobia.
- Not much pride in the AFL’s LGBTQI+ efforts.
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Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsSamantha Selinger-Morris· Host0:00
[gentle music] This weekend, you were meant to be able to watch a special game played between the Sydney Swans and the St Kilda Saints, a Pride game in which the players would wear rainbow jerseys and celebrate inclusivity, and which would, as the Sydney Swans website once put it, ensure everyone feels safe and welcome at the footy. But for the first time in a decade, because of a recent scandal, it's been scrapped. I'm Samantha Selinger-Morris, and you're listening to the Morning Edition from The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald. Today, special correspondent Steven Brooke on the role that homophobic slurs play in footy and why the code's attempts at cracking down on them may be backfiring. It's June the 3rd. And just a heads-up, this episode contains offensive language. Welcome, Steven, to the podcast.
Stephen Brook· Guest1:01
Thank you very much, Samantha.
Samantha Selinger-Morris· Host1:03
Okay. Well, let's get stuck in because, Steven, in normal circumstances, this weekend would mark the AFL's annual Pride game, but it's been scrapped. Why?
Stephen Brook· Guest1:13
Essentially, this has been a long-running game for about 10 years between St Kilda and the Sydney Swans. The short answer is, uh, the Sydney Swans said, "No, we don't wanna play St Kilda as part of this annual tradition. We would prefer to play another