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Speaker 1: You're listening to the FITZI and whipp A podcast.

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Speaker 2: Now, do you know what I really did? You see?

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Speaker 2: What I want to first say here is I really

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Speaker 2: do have to praise the manly Se Eagles because they've

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Speaker 2: taken a stance. And I didn't know this because we

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Speaker 2: talk about pride round and there is one in the AFL,

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Speaker 2: but the NRL have never had one. And I think

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Speaker 2: the major reason is is because there are a majority

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Speaker 2: of the players who are for religious reasons don't want

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Speaker 2: to get involved. Manly are the first time. I didn't

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Speaker 2: know this, but they are the first team ever to

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Speaker 2: actually have a pride jersey this weekend and unfortunately seven

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Speaker 2: players have said that we will not play if you

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Speaker 2: if we have to wear the rainbow jersey.

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Speaker 3: A couple of things in it, isn't there? I mean

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Speaker 3: one here politicizing sport again. People are getting sick of that.

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Speaker 3: That's one point to make. Secondly, I'm not sure what

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Speaker 3: religion they're talking about or what they're focusing on.

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Speaker 2: Will be the same as Israel.

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Speaker 3: Well, when you look at Islam, if that's what it is,

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Speaker 3: they're against gambling also, but you'd know that the major

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Speaker 3: sponsor is points bet, which is written across the front

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Speaker 3: and they seem to pull that on.

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Speaker 2: Is it against gamb Yeah, you shouldn't gamble studied his

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Speaker 2: lamb have you?

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Speaker 4: No?

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Speaker 3: I haven't, but I think that's an understanding that.

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Speaker 2: I alcohol another one I.

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Speaker 3: Will not go into knowing that I know all about it.

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Speaker 3: But no, the gambling cannedy as well.

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Speaker 5: I don't think supports gambling. Don't know, and I don't

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Speaker 5: in same sex marriage, they don't.

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Speaker 3: So there's never been an issue with the points about

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Speaker 3: sponsorship down at the mainly Sea Eagles. That's never been

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Speaker 3: an issue with pulling on the jersey.

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Speaker 2: I mean because the ground that they play it is

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Speaker 2: the four pints part, so that is alcohol points bet.

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Speaker 2: He's involved as well. But now that there's going to

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Speaker 2: be a rainbow jersey this weekend, there's seven players have

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Speaker 2: said we will not wear it, so the club have

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Speaker 2: had to stand them down and I'm good on them now.

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Speaker 2: The reason why as well because Ian Roberts. We know

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Speaker 2: Ian Roberts has been such a great advocate for homosexuality

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Speaker 2: and for the gay community, and he was going to

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Speaker 2: come out into the ground this weekend. He's shattered. He

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Speaker 2: really shatters you I try to see it from all perspectives,

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Speaker 2: he said, but this breaks my heart, and I understand does.

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Speaker 3: He also went on to say, think about the kids

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Speaker 3: that are playing foot at the moment, coming up through

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Speaker 3: the ages, that might be challenged by their sexuality or

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Speaker 3: trying to figure out who they are. And then you've

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Speaker 3: got a message sent like this by some of their

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Speaker 3: idols possibly and their senior players saying that no, we're

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Speaker 3: not comfortable with that.

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Speaker 2: You know, it's even worse. Imagine if you imagine if

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Speaker 2: you had tenderseas when you were younger, and you're in

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Speaker 2: one of these families God that are part of this religion,

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Speaker 2: where do you go? You have no support at all

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Speaker 2: from anybody.

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Speaker 5: And equally so though, if you grew up with a

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Speaker 5: religion and I can't relate personally to either of these

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Speaker 5: because I'm not hugely religious and I'm heterosexual, but if

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Speaker 5: you grew up with a religion, you don't know any different, And.

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Speaker 3: So it's just one way.

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Speaker 5: That's right is winning in this scenario, They've tried to

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Speaker 5: do the right thing and you've got two really confused

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Speaker 5: groups of people.

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Speaker 2: It is. It's really sad, but you know, like I said,

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Speaker 2: world under Manly because you know what Manly could have gone, Well,

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Speaker 2: we don't have seven players, so we're going to scrap

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Speaker 2: the jersey. But they're sticking to it.

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Speaker 3: They've pushed on.

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Speaker 2: For them to be the first team in the NRL

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Speaker 2: to actually do it is pretty rounding.

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Speaker 3: Its huge.

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Speaker 2: We've come a long way.

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Speaker 3: Really, that's I'm on.

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Speaker 2: There should be a Pride round without a doubt. That's

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Speaker 2: my say.

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Speaker 3: Mate, you've said, oh.

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Speaker 2: Crack that.

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Speaker 3: We'll keep you up to speed on that story.

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Speaker 2: It has been the talking point all morning on the

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Speaker 2: front page of the Daily Telegraph Rainbow Warriors Manly players

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Speaker 2: revolt over pride jersey. I really commend the Manly Seagles

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Speaker 2: for actually doing something about this. We need a Pride

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Speaker 2: Round in the NRL, and they're the first team to

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Speaker 2: actually put together a rainbow jersey and go out and

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Speaker 2: talk about inclusivity and getting everyone together. And unfortunately seven

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Speaker 2: players have said no, we will not wear the jersey

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Speaker 2: and we will not play this week. Now there has

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Speaker 2: been an update on that. There is a press conference

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Speaker 2: today Mattie Degree.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, midday today, Many's going to speak and a lot

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Speaker 4: of the players and the coaches and the officials who

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Speaker 4: are impacted, and you spoke about Ian Roberts, the first

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Speaker 4: rugby league player to come out as openly gay, as

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Speaker 4: one of those players who won't speak publicly until after

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Speaker 4: they find out exactly what Manly's going to be doing.

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Speaker 4: It looks like at least three to four, but not

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Speaker 4: seven players will stand down, but are doing it with

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Speaker 4: the full support of coach Dez Hasler, understanding that with

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Speaker 4: religious and cultural reasons they are choosing not to play.

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Speaker 4: This is Peter of Landy speaking this morning.

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Speaker 1: We're all human beings at the end of the day,

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Speaker 1: and rugby league is the greatest game for all. It's inclusive,

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Speaker 1: but at the same time you've got to respect people's

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Speaker 1: religious beliefs and cultural beliefs, and those players are taking

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Speaker 1: a stand and they've got every right too. They've got

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Speaker 1: freedoms to do so. We live in a free country.

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Speaker 4: So that's where the NRL is standing at the moment.

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Speaker 4: It's an awkward one and it's disappointing for what the

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Speaker 4: club was clearly trying to do, but it's also one

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Speaker 4: that the club is imposing this thought on the players

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Speaker 4: and that's something the game says.

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Speaker 3: You can't we've said it before in the game and

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Speaker 3: individuals coming out and not supporting and due to religious beliefs,

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Speaker 3: that's their stance.

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Speaker 4: The difference though with Israel follow and I know that

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Speaker 4: to your referring to it is his comments were homophobic, yes,

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Speaker 4: seriously aggressive, and he took it upon himself to make

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Speaker 4: those comments, where in this instant it's true the Seagulls

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Speaker 4: players are being told you just got to wear this jewel.

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Speaker 3: So the conversation is at this point and we're down

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Speaker 3: to three possible players that aren't comfortable with it based

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Speaker 3: on a religious factor. I think it's still fantastic that

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Speaker 3: this conversation is happening. So it's drawing more attention to it.

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Speaker 3: It's great, it's building greater awareness. And I think this

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Speaker 3: is a note for the other clubs as well to

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Speaker 3: say that we can this happen. But here's how it looks.

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Speaker 3: There's going to be some division, but we can move

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Speaker 3: forward with this.

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Speaker 2: Can I get this right? Because today when we picked

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Speaker 2: up the paper they said seven players. Now three players

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Speaker 2: are now prepared to wear the jersey.

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Speaker 4: Is that correct, MDJA, That's what we understand.

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Speaker 2: So look, you know what this is what I'm very

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Speaker 2: happy about as well, because they may have religious beliefs,

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Speaker 2: but they are also progressive and I'm hoping that they

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Speaker 2: know how much this means to a young man or

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Speaker 2: a young female who are really struggling to come out

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Speaker 2: in a situation like this, like Ian robertson. Ian Roberts's

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Speaker 2: story is unbelievable. For him to become out as the

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Speaker 2: first gay man in rugby league, we went through helenbag

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Speaker 2: and for him to go back to his old club

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Speaker 2: and to deal with this, I find it real hard,

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Speaker 2: but I do get satisfaction knowing that there are three

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Speaker 2: players that are prepared to progress and there is.

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Speaker 4: A purely practical point of view in the season. Manly

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Speaker 4: and the Roosters are sitting there on the fringe of

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Speaker 4: the eighth. They're on eighteen competition points. This is a

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Speaker 4: really big game now. These players when it came out,

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Speaker 4: they may have all rallied together. From what I understand,

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Speaker 4: Manly just made the decision. And the first time a

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Speaker 4: bunch of the players found out about it was the

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Speaker 4: photo in the paper yesterday. So this wasn't a great Some.

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Speaker 3: Of the frustration was it because I think in the

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Speaker 3: past in terms of sponsorship and other sensitivities. They've been

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Speaker 3: brought across it earlier and there's been an awareness made.

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Speaker 4: And so they've gone, WHOA, well, let's not do it.

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Speaker 4: But some of the senior guys may have been a

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Speaker 4: little bit more imposing of their will on the younger guys.

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Speaker 4: Now they've had time to cool and think about it.

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Speaker 4: I do not believe that Manly are in a position

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Speaker 4: that they thought they'd be in, but they are handling

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Speaker 4: it as sensitively as they can and unpleased. As you said, Fitz,

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Speaker 4: They're still going to wear the jersey on Thursday. They

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Speaker 4: are gonna wear it, and if the players don't want

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Speaker 4: to play them and Whipper Podcast