Sport
20 July, 2023
First Nations identity inspires Yowies
LAST Saturday’s rugby league outing in Kilcoy was a special time for former Kilcoy rugby league player Edward Monaei, who came to watch the club he had played for in the mid 1980s.
The chairperson of the Queensland Rugby League (QRL) Indigenous Advisory Committee and a member of the Australian Rugby League (ARL) Indigenous Advisory Council, Monaei was in Sydney for State of Origin game three before returning to Queensland on Friday.
During the half-time break in the Kilcoy versus Pomona-Cooran match, the Yowies “took a knee” under instruction from Monaei, who said this day was “a really big day” for him.
Monaei told the players that “this is our day” and “I’m here with you”.
Afterwards, Monaei said he had been the only First Nations player in the team in the mid 1980s, and that it made him so proud to see how multicultural the 2023 team was.
“The history of our club is entrenched in playing for community, family and culture of our club which is brotherhood,” he said.
Monaei described this as “quite powerful”.
Yowies coach Anthony Longbottom gave credit to Monaei afterwards, saying Monaei’s words had a meaningful impact on the players.
