The Roosters said that in the wake of Spencer Leniu’s admission to the judiciary, the entire team will undergo cultural training.
The Sydney Roosters have declared that all members of the team will undergo cultural training following Spencer Leniu’s claim that NRL players of colour frequently refer to one another by derogatory terms like “blacky,” “monkey,” and “black c***.” Leniu received an eight-week ban on Monday night for urging Ezra Mam to “f*** up you monkey”. The prop said that he made the remark after hearing the Indigenous star mention him during their Las Vegas first-round match.
Because of his suspension, Leniu will play his first round return on May 12 against the Warriors, one week after the rest of the Roosters team travels to Brisbane to play the Broncos in a much-anticipated revenge match. Leniu’s legal team argued for a reduced four-game suspension for the former Penrith premiership winner after he entered a guilty plea. The prop claimed at the time that he was unaware of the term’s racial undertones.
Playing in his first game for the Roosters after coming from Penrith, the recruit said he was just “one brown man saying something to another brown man” and denied knowing the term’s historical significance. During a 90-minute hearing, Leniu told the panel, “A lot of people in my circle and in the same skin tone as me, our slang and how we speak to each other has all those words.”
“All those kinds of words are used, including black c***. We communicate to one other about them on a daily basis since they are so prevalent in our language. “Blacky, we always have a competition to see who is the darkest member of the team, including Monkey and other similar things.”
Leniu insisted that his comment to Mam was just intended as “banter”. The next morning, he received a call from an Indigenous woman who clarified the historical significance. The Roosters took action to prevent history from happening again after Leniu’s sentencing and admittance to the NRL judiciary. Leniu’s admission also brought attention to a wider problem within the game.
The CEO of the Roosters, Joe Kelly, praised Mam and the Broncos for how they handled the situation, but he maintained that Leniu was not racist and that the remark was the result of ignorance. “We’ll increase his education about the Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander people,” Kelly stated.
“We’ll be rooting for every other Indigenous player in the team as well. Additionally, all employees and athletes will receive additional training in both these cultures and Pacific culture.”
Andrew Abdo says sentence reflects league’s tough stance on racism
The lengthy penalty demonstrated the NRL’s firm position against racism, according to CEO Andrew Abdo. “Racism and vilification has no place in modern society and will not be tolerated in rugby league,” Abdo stated.
“Everything the game is based on is at odds with what happened the previous week. We are all quite proud of the game’s close ties to Indigenous culture, its portrayal of players from those cultures and Pacific Islands, and its capacity to unite disparate people.
Be the first to comment