'Open and honest': Sharks stand tall for Mental Fitness Round

"Find your feet if you experience anxiety."

Gathered in the inner sanctum of the Cronulla Sharks football club, four hardened elite athletes – seemingly bulletproof on the field – courageously stand tall.

"Stay standing if you've felt it once or twice in the last six months."

Nicho Hynes, Tom Hazelton, Ronaldo Mulitalo and Rhiannon Byers remain still.

"Once or twice in the last week?"

No movement.

"Stay standing and be honest if it's part of your daily life."

Only Mulitalo sits down.

Prompted by Find Ya Feet founder Tommy Herschell – a mental health crusader who has helped 50,000 people around Australia – the Sharks stars remove their armour and reveal the human side of the rugby league gladiators who entertain us each week.

Leading up to the club's second annual Mental Fitness Round, culminating with Saturday night's NRL game against the Storm at Sharks Stadium, the players demonstrate the power of vulnerability under Herschell's guidance.

The full workshop can be viewed below, continuing the impact of the inaugural Sharks Mental Fitness Round driven by Hynes last May.

Emotions run deep during a condensed 20-minute session, with Byers and Hazelton opening up about losing close friends and the pain they still carry.

In another moving moment, Mulitalo and Hynes discuss the brutally honest conversations that have allowed them to forge a unique bond.

"We come from two different backgrounds, both had some hard upbringings, and it's about the understanding of each other," Mulitalo divulges.

"At some point, we didn't get that right.

"I love him to death for it now … When times get tough, even during games, we look at each other and we've got each other's back."

Hazelton adds: "We're a club that's pretty open and honest.

"We can go to a lot of people about how we're feeling with certain things, but even just standing up then, you probably don't know that any of these three have had anxiety feelings or been feeling bad in the last seven days.

"It opens your eyes that you need to check in on people that you care about regularly, not just when they're having bad days or it seems like they're having bad days."

It's a message that Herschell has shared in his travels around the country over the past decade, equipping students, workplaces and sporting clubs with the tools to vocalise their challenges, own their behaviour and support their peers.

Find Ya Feet's partnership with the Sharks, which has seen Herschell present to the club's NRL and Junior Rep squads as well as admin staff, will help the organisation connect with schools and organisations across the Sutherland Shire.

When people feel like a burden on other people, they're really not at all

Nicho Hynes

Aramex, the community-minded premier partner of the Sharks, has also backed Find Ya Feet's important mission with a substantial financial contribution.

The need for Herschell's work is evident in his experiences.

"I genuinely reckon I've heard 10,000 young people say, hey, I'm either thinking about taking my own life or I have attempted, or I'm just battling," Herschell says.

Tommy's story

A schoolteacher by trade, Herschell vividly recalls several sobering moments that allowed him to 'find his feet', setting him on the path to changing lives.

The knockabout Queenslander always starts his workshops by talking about the enduring impact of Bastien Madrill, a teenager who showed Herschell what it means to be real.

'Bas' tragically died from Ewing's sarcoma, a rare and aggressive form of cancer, in 2012, but his spirit shines brightly through Herschell's talks.

"When I met him, I was 32. I was a functioning egomaniac and lunatic," he says.

"All my anger was coming out in really unhealthy ways. He was 15 and a half, he'd been given a life sentence, and he was just his own man. He was authentic, he was genuine.

"Along that journey, he said to his mum and dad, 'Tell all my mates to love life and don't waste it'. He passed away the afternoon of saying that.

"What Bas did for me, and what he's done for almost 50,000 people Australia wide, is provide an opportunity for all those people to stop and find their feet."

Bas' outlook forced Herschell to evaluate his life choices, leading him to formulate questions that are now at the heart of his transformative presentations.

"How could I be operating better? How could I react in this situation? What's a tool or skill I could use here instead of going straight to the bottle?" he says.

"What's a skill or tool I could use here instead of using my fists? How can I be there for my mate who's battling? It might be challenging, but I can step into it and do the right thing.

"It's like out on the footy field: it's about having that structure, systems, discipline, and bringing that into our lives. I noticed a lot of young people I was teaching didn't have that."

Another moment that shifted the course of Herschell's trajectory came when a good friend, former Balmain Tigers player Neil Pringle, called him out for playing the victim and encouraged him to "step up".

He walked into a counsellor's office the next day.

"Her name is Elizabeth – she said one of the best things I've ever heard in my life and again gave me an opportunity to find my feet," Herschell continues.

"She said, 'You were 10 years old when your parents split up and you were wounded like a little boy would be at that age, but you never, ever have learnt how to be a functioning adult.

"'Every time something goes wrong, you stomp your feet, you cry and all your emotions come out in unhealthy ways. My job is to teach you tools and skills to be a functioning adult'.

"She's right – there's a wounded boy or a wounded girl that lives in all of us.

"If we don't ever gain the tools or skills to control that little person or to look after them, we're forever going to behave that way."

Cronulla's NRL squad are embracing the Find Ya Feet philosophy.

"When we know what's going on for someone off the field, we play better on it," Herschell says of his approach to sporting organisations.

Hynes leads by example

After watching Nicho Hynes speak passionately about mental health on TV, Herschell reached out to the Dally M Medal-winning halfback through Instagram. He didn't expect a response.

Within minutes, Hynes replied and offered to lend his profile to Find Ya Feet's cause.

The NSW Origin representative stands among an array of Find Ya Feet ambassadors including Test cricketers Mitch Marsh and Matthew Hayden, NRL legends Sam Thaiday, Luke Lewis and Dale Finucane, Ironman Ky Hurst and swimmer Geoff Huegill.

Without any prompting or fanfare, Hynes will rock up to school workshops all over Sydney to share his experiences and advice with the next generation.

Having been awarded the prestigious NRL Ken Stephen Medal last year for his tireless community work, Hynes continues to lead the way in mental health advocacy.

"When people feel like a burden on other people, they're really not at all," Hynes says.

"If someone says it is a burden, they've got the issue – not you.

"I'm really proud and refreshed to sit here with a great bunch of people and talk about something that means so much to me.

"If your role models are sitting here, if you love any of these three (Hazelton, Mulitalo, Byers) or myself, and we can stand and talk about our feelings, then why can't you?

"You're not a burden and you should feel like you can talk to people because everyone around you loves and appreciates you for who you are.

"Speak to those people and be comfortable doing it."

To learn more about how Find Ya Feet is helping schools and communities build mental strength, CLICK HERE.

If you need help or support go to:

Lifeline – 24/7 crisis support and suicide prevention services
Visit: www.lifeline.org.au | Call: 13 11 14

Suicide Call Back Service – Free counselling for people affected by suicide
Visit: www.suicidecallbackservice.org.au | Call: 1300 659 467

13YARN – Crisis support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
Visit: www.13yarn.org.au | Call: 13 92 76

Kids Helpline – Free, confidential support for young people aged 5–25
Visit: www.kidshelpline.com.au | Call: 1800 55 1800

You are not alone. Support is available. Please reach out if you need to talk.