A meeting in February of nations as diverse as Argentina, Vietnam, South Africa and Poland has given birth to a new rugby league body which will officially launch with a competition on Saturday October 29th 2022.
Heritage Rugby League (HRL) was formed to encourage increased multicultural participation in Rugby League, at all levels.
The Harmony Nines taking place at Croome Road Sporting Complex at Albion Park on the New South Wales South Coast in the last weekend of October signifies the first major event under the combined NSWRL and HRL banners.
Although several individual games have occurred between different cultural identities this year, the Harmony Nines tournament is hoped to be a jewel in the calendar each season.
Javed Hamidi, a former employee of the National Rugby League and Australian Rugby League for a decade, and holder of an MBA, has been installed as the founding president.
“We had 33 attendees at our General Meeting, representing five continents, with another 15 or so people who were apologies,” Mr Hamidi said.
“As word spreads of Heritage Rugby League and what we aim to achieve, I’m sure we will add new and exciting territories.
“Everybody in attendance for the General Meeting was evidently passionate about multicultural Rugby League, whether that be at a community level, or right through to those wanting to play Emerging Nations Championships and World Cups.
“Importantly, we are approaching this from a 360-degree perspective that isn’t solely confined to what happens on the field, and we acknowledge the education, experiences and cultural expression that take place at these events are often just as significant.”
HRL is legally incorporated in NSW, and formally affiliated to New South Wales Rugby League, but intends to work in unison with other State Leagues, the Asia Pacific Rugby League, and the International Rugby League.
The chief aims of the new body are to create new and encouraging pathways into the sport for all ethnicities, and clarify and streamline the existing processes for multicultural teams to compete within NSW and Australia.
The founding committee consists of Mr Hamidi, who is from part-Pakistani background, along with long-time Malta Rugby League official David Axisa, Filipino rugby league doyen Reynaldo Nery, Burmese digital services expert Helen Wright, Cook Islands official Maherau Arona, and Italian-heritage media and promotions expert Michael Carbone.
Gareth Holmes, Steven Birchall and Robert Burgin provide a link to the Asia Pacific Rugby League Confederation, as well as personal experience with teams ranging from the Australian Kangaroos, to start-up community leagues in Asia and Latin America.
Long-time NRL International Development Officer and former head coach of France Tas Baitieri is an advisor to the Heritage Rugby League Committee, with Peter Clarke of NSWRL providing invaluable support and direction to the fledgling body.
“It’s a volunteer committee stacked with people who have the sport’s best interests at heart,” Mr Hamidi said.
“There is a strong mixture of experiences and capabilities, so that we can consider issues from the perspective of players, volunteers and supporters, not just from an administration point-of-view.
“It’s a proactive group that is focused on possibilities and solutions so that we can see more people playing Rugby League, more nations playing Rugby League, and more events being staged.
“There are some exciting concepts and models of competition being discussed and, with refinement, we hope to be able to announce these in coming months.”
-ENDS-
For further information contact: info@heritagerugbyleague.com
