Working shoulder to shoulder at the Storm
18 September 2020: Brian Phelan (BP) and Peter Robinson (Robbo) started working together at Melbourne Storm just over thirteen years ago. Melbourne Storm was in the process of setting up a player wellbeing program and figured the pair were just the right fit.
Tips to progress your sport club while in isolation
It is an unsettling time for sport clubs as we start to reimagine how our players will train and if they will play any competitive matches in 2020. It's also the perfect time to think about how our clubs might look when we start back up again.
Five ways to stay active during lock down
The lycra-powered energy of Aerobics Oz Style dominated our free-to-air TV’s in the 90’s. A couple of decades on and the craze of home workouts have come back with a vengeance, with brand new ‘motivators’ urging us to flex-and-stretch our way to fitness.
NRL’s ‘blokey culture’ targeted in Club Respect trial at 27 Victorian youth clubs
19 March 2019: For the NRL it's been a disastrous off season, with allegations of violence against women reaching crisis levels. North Queensland's Ben Barba received a lifetime ban after a video emerged of him allegedly assaulting his partner at a Townsville casino during the Australia Day weekend.
‘I’m no longer proud to say I love rugby league’: The NRL’s women problem is deep-seated
Marina Go was staggered when she realised the sheer volume of sex videos of rugby league players doing the rounds on social media. The former chairwoman of the Wests Tigers remembers how the moment came in a casual conversation last year with one of the club's coaches.
Australian sports clubs targeted to lead by example and effect social change
24 October 2018: Club Respect co-founders Mary Crooks AO (Victorian Women's Trust) and Paul Zappa spoke to Guardian Australia about our latest initiative Club Respect and how it will equip clubs to become places of respect and fair play.
Club Respect: A new kind of team
12 September 2018: Club Respect, a new website created by the Victorian Women’s Trust and NIRODAH, will help sporting clubs of all codes and levels hit the ground running when it comes to preventing violent or abusive behaviour.
Club Respect launching at AAMI Park!
5 September 2018: Club Respect is a practical website designed for sports clubs of all shapes and sizes to reduce violent and abusive behaviour. Whether you are a coach, a player, a spectator, club president or parent, Club Respect provides you with simple strategies to make a positive impact. Pass it on.
More than silverware
AFL is my thing – I’ve loved it as long as I can remember. Being a Hawthorn fan, it was easy to love what happened on the field and for years that was enough. But the longer I have lived, the more that love has been complicated, fraught and frequently challenged.
Sport has been driving community development for generations of Australians
“You’re starting on the bench today,” said my Under-11’s soccer coach on a cold and windy Sunday in 1994. I didn’t end up playing at all that game and it was freezing. Maybe I should’ve tried harder at the training session leading up to match day?