'Unification is better than division': Diversity bonds Sharks NRL squad
From Tonga to Germany, Samoa to Cook Islands, New Zealand to England, Lebanon to Australia and beyond – the Cronulla Sharks NRL squad is a rich melting pot of backgrounds and cultures.
That diversity will be celebrated during Saturday's Multicultural Round clash with the Dolphins at Ocean Protect Stadium, amplifying the theme of Stronger Together.
The match is the culmination of the club's Harmony Week blitz, with the Sharks Have Heart community team visiting Yowie Bay Public School, Bonnet Bay Public School and Menai Public School to deliver the One Heart anti-racism program.
At the end of each presentation – which features Cronulla stars Ronaldo Mulitalo, Braden Uele and Jada Taylor as inclusion spokespeople – a pupil was crowned a 'Harmony Week Champion' and awarded tickets to this weekend's NRL blockbuster thanks to Sharks community partner Quest Apartment Hotels.
Menai High School students who have recently become 'Peace Advocates' after completing the NRL's In League In Harmony program will also be in attendance.
Unification is better than division
Sharks prop Toby Rudolf
Meanwhile, Taylor and fellow NRLW player Quincy Dodd were special guests of The Sutherland Hospital on Thursday, March 19 for the unveiling of an Indigenous mural created by local artist Wayne Visser from Red Dust Original.
"It's fitting that during Harmony Week and Multicultural Round, with its key theme of 'Stronger Together', the club is spreading positive and inclusive messages in the community," Sharks Head of Community & Government Relations Vinh Tran said.
"Multicultural Round is one of our favourite occasions on the NRL calendar, reinforcing that diversity is a strength and rugby league is a game for everyone."
The Sharks are blessed with at least 46 cultural identities throughout the club, including staff. A banner with various flags hangs proudly in the Ocean Protect Stadium tunnel near the dressing sheds, underlining the value of diversity.
The multicultural mix among Cronulla's NRL squad includes:
- Addin Fonua-Blake, Sione Katoa, Sifa Talakai , Tuku Hau Tapuha, Chris Vea'ila (Tongan)
- Oregon Kaufusi, Braden Uele (Samoan)
- Ronaldo Mulitalo (American Samoan/Kiwi)
- KL Iro (Cook Islander)
- Toby Rudolf (German)
- Nicho Hynes, Braydon Trindall, Jesse Ramien, Will Kennedy, Niwhai Puru, Hohepa Puru (Indigenous Australian)
- Blayke Brailey (Australian/English)
- Briton Nikora, Mawene Hiroti, Niwhai Puru, Hohepa Puru, Tuku Hau Tapuha (Kiwi/Māori)
- Michael Gabrael (Lebanese)
"Unification is better than division and I think these rounds are really good for getting people together," front-rower Rudolf said.
"I'm quite proud of my culture. The first thing I tell people is that I'm German and I've got a passport – I'm a European citizen."
Hynes, a proud Wiradjuri and Darkinjung man, added: "Multicultural Round is an important round for us – definitely here at the Cronulla Sharks and in the NRL. I come from Aboriginal descent and I'm very proud of that.
"We have a really good group of boys who are very proud of where they come from and are very proud of their teammates representing who they are."
For centre KL Iro, Multicultural Round offers the opportunity to "represent my people, my family and myself as a cultural person too".
So too Addin Fonua-Blake, who said: "It means a lot to me to play for my culture and many others boys' as well ... All coming together as one."
As for Australian born-and-raised prop Tom Hazelton, rugby league has provided an enriching window into other customs and ways of living around the globe.
"We have a lot of guys that come from different parts of the world, different cultures, different walks of life," Hazelton said.
"The one thing we have in common is the club and this game."
