The adorable Aaron Neich is the brand new 19-year-old cheerleader for the Penrith Panthers, a team in Australia's National Rugby League. And he's gay. Let me repeat: Neich is a gay male cheerleader in a rugby league, arguably one of the most machismo sports where homophobic taunts are part of game play. But Neich isn't fazed when it comes to the possibility of backlash: "I have had it all my life, I have grown up with getting names called, if people call me a gay poof, I am and I don't care." And as for his uniform, they'll "butch" him up with "black cargo pants and a pink tank top without the pom poms his female colleagues will use." So let's see one of his routines:
"If you have got it, flaunt it. Sticks and stones will break my bones but words will never hurt me, as the saying goes.
"The reason why everyone is so 'Oh My God' is because I am out the west, the west is knowns as being hard headed and blokey blokey."
Aaron said he hopes he can set an example for other young kids who might be at the football with their families but are also interested in dance.
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You go girl! How great to see.
"arguably one of the most machismo sports where homophobic taunts are part of game play"
where did you get that idea from? I played rugby for years as an out gay man (on straight teams) and never found fellow ruggers to be anything but supportive.
i hope u guys show footage of a game he will perform in.i would love to see how he is accepted
I LOVE the music track and the edits in that clip!
It's so cheeky.
My gut reaction – is that Sacha Noam Cohen?
Clearly not.
Shane Mercado, are you paying attention?
Adorable, but I have to say our gurls are better. Still, respect for his passion.
his attitude is very uplifting, now he just needs a new hair cut.
@petted: Sacha Baron Cohen.
No David you are wrong…American Football is "one of the most machismo sports where homophobic taunts are part of game play" not Rugby.
Things are different outside of the United States. Rugby certainly has its issues, but you really cant compare the two when it comes to homophobia.
Rugby has its moments, but it's not that homophobic as world sports go. Australian rugby star Ian Roberts came out and still played professionally, and has said that he found a lot of support in the rugby community. Straight professional player Ben Cohen not only frequently acknowledges his gay fans, but also held a dinner for them. Gay rugby teams play in the same leagues as everyone else and – generally – have said that the levels of homophobia aren't that great and tend to be sorted out on the pitch rather than the bar afterwards. It's not perfect, but rugby's a lot better than many other sports when it comes to tackling homophobia.
I dunno about rugby being one of the most homophobic sports. I seem to recall a recent video where a rugby team all got their balls checked out together, naked. Also, I seem to recall many rugby players getting naked for calendars to be oogled (clearly knowing that thier target demographic was mostly gay men). The posting history alone (http://www.queerty.com/tag/rugby/ — albeit mostly about gay rugby teams) seems to point mostly toward a rather homo-tolerant bunch. Interesting post, but that statement is a little, well, bunk.
@thisismikesother – the rugby ball cancer checking was classic. To bad sporty heterosexual American men are soo insecure.
Yeah look at ross the intern and how some players were horrible……but some were nice too
Guys
If you don't know there are two forms of rugby. Rugby League, a 13-a-side game & Rugby Union , a 15-a-side game.
Did anyone that?
Anyway it is the union form of the game that fay the more gay orientated. Look here:
http://www.outsports.com/news/2007/rugby0717.htm
@Mounting Albert – I don't have any idea what that means.
Sebbe
Coming for a country where either of the rugby codes isn't a major football code my comments probably make no sense.
In Australia where the 13-a-side code dominates the rival 15-a-side code has started a campaign to call their code rugby & refer to rugby leage as just league.
League by itself just means a competition. Anyway have a look here – some background information & I'll get the article about it.
http://www.rl1908.com/rugby-league-history.htm