footballers knives

Jason Akermanis, Supporter of Closeted Athletes, Will Not Go Quietly Into the Night

Jason Akermanis, the Australian footballer who said gay players would stay in the closet if they knew what’s good for them, did not “resign” from the Western Bulldogs team — he was sacked, he now says.

Well yeah, no crap. After his comments went live in a newspaper column in May, and he followed them up with television interviews, the Bulldogs suspended him. And then the team decided it didn’t want to deal with him at all and axed him, all the while concocting a public statement that he resigned, and hoping Akermanis would go along with it.

But he’s his own man, and he will text message the truth to newspapers if he wants to!

Akermanis, one of two Queenslanders to have won the Brownlow Medal, had an explosive meeting with Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade over his exclusion from the senior side to play Fremantle on Sunday. “Mate they sacked me, all I wanted to do was help in September and they didn’t want my help,” Akermanis told The Courier-Mail last night.

The three-time Brisbane Lions premiership player told Bulldogs officials there was no way he would agree to a statement that suggested the decision to end his playing career was mutual. The outspoken personality decided this was one occasion in which he would keep his words to a minimum. Akermanis, 33, sent news of his termination to The Courier-Mail by text message and confirmed he would not be speaking publicly.

In a phone call later, he expressed his anger at the Bulldogs for sacking him without a farewell game and insisted he had been prepared to do whatever it took to earn a recall to the senior side. “People have got to take responsibility for their own actions,” Eade said. “You can’t say it’s the parents’ fault that a person has been in jail 45 times.”

Okay, now I have completely no idea where he’s going with this.

Don't forget to share:

Help make sure LGBTQ+ stories are being told...

We can't rely on mainstream media to tell our stories. That's why we don't lock Queerty articles behind a paywall. Will you support our mission with a contribution today?

Cancel anytime · Proudly LGBTQ+ owned and operated