Leigh Ryswyk on becoming the AFL’s first openly gay male player

Well, this week, another former AFL player took a big decision coming out as the league's

first gay male player.

It follows the historic decision by Mitch Brown to come out as the league's first queer

male footballer when he announced last year that he's bisexual.

Lee Rosewick was drafted by Brisbane, playing one match for the Lions in 2005 before being

delisted.

He then played more than 200 games in the South Australian National Football League before

being inducted into the Queensland Football Hall of Fame.

Here's how Lee broke the news about his sexuality on community radio station, joy FM's

gay AFL programme on Wednesday night.

Been in football for a long time and over the last sort of little period of time, things

have changed a little bit for me as well.

And five years ago, I came out as a gay man, which was, you know, massive for me and being

a part of the football community and things like that and doing this, it was tough, I

didn't like it.

It was a tough thing to do and it took me a lot of time to get to this point, but I'm

so happy that I did.

That's Lee Rosewick there and Lee joins me now.

Thanks for having me.

It's been more than a day since you've publicly shared this news.

What's the response been like for you?

Yeah, no, it's been overwhelmingly supportive.

I've received so many messages and calls from people who I do know, who I don't know.

Just thanking me for doing what I've done, you know, putting the word out there and opening

up, I guess, other people to think, you know, what, it might be okay for them to do it

as well at some point.

Why did you decide that now was the time to share this story publicly because your friends

and family knew five years ago, why now to do it on a public level?

Yeah, it was why not now.

For me, I was very comfortable to get to the point of going, you know, what, it's okay

Lee now that you're who you are and, you know, what you've achieved is okay.

I feel very comfortable in myself now and the opportunity came up with Chris and Brendan

on their GFL show at Joy FM and I was like, you know, why not Lee?

Why not have a chat?

Why not get the word out there?

I didn't expect this response to be honest.

I've said it a little bit, I'm, you know, I did play AFL football a very long time ago

and I understand that, you know, I've only played one game, but this is not about being

an AFL footballer coming out as gay, it's about just our inclusion and letting people

know that it's okay to be out and it's okay to still play footy and be you.

What was it like for you as a footballer before you were out?

Were you hearing comments seeing things that you thought are if only they knew?

No, not really like the culture of footy cubs is very good, I believe.

I've never felt uncomfortable.

I've never felt anyone say something that I was like, Oh, God, I wish they didn't say that

or, oh my God, I can't be near those people.

Never felt it.

Yes, there's been comments and things like that thrown around at different times and,

you know, consciously or unconsciously, who knows?

Yeah, I've never felt unsafe or never felt uncomfortable or I couldn't be myself.

It was really up to me to really decide when I was feeling comfortable and it's a scary

thing. There's a lot of fear that goes in and hopefully over time that fear for people

does dissipate, but yeah, that was, it was all on me at the end.

We've had loads of female football players come out or more often they're not arriving

the league already out.

Why do you think there's such a difference between the men's and women's games for AFL

of people feeling comfortable to be who they are?

It's a really good question.

It's something that I guess the AFL must be looking at with the AFL W and to see why

are they so comfortable?

And I think there's been role models over the years that have really put the word out

there.

I said in my interview, you know, you look back at tennis, Billie Jean King, my tenant

average, her low.

But they really started this a long time ago and started putting it out there and then

people have followed in the women's side that they're just, they just feel so comfortable

to be themselves and hopefully at some point men are going to just be as comfortable as

women to go, you know what?

I can just be myself too.

It doesn't matter.

It doesn't change anything.

And that's the hope of this.

It's that people are going to just go, you know what?

It's okay to be me.

You were saying you've received a lot of messages in the past 24 hours or so, Lee.

Is there one that's really struck you already so far that you've received?

Yeah, there was a mum that messaged me.

She just said, thank you so much.

There's a mum of two gay boys to know that there are people like you willing to step out

of your comfort zone and speak about this.

This feels my heart with so much joy and I was just like, oh wow, okay, you know, the

impact that you've had Lee on people you don't even know and who don't even know you is,

this is about in the end.

It's not about me.

It's about other people at the end being able to be comfortable and feel like they can

do it as well and I'm lucky enough I do have a great network and I've not experienced

any, you know, hate or issues with me coming out.

I know that's not the same for everyone so everyone's story and everyone's time is going

to be up to them.

If there's a little bit of me talking about it can help others, then that's what it's

about.

What would your message be for any players who are grappling in their own minds with this

part of themselves?

Be ready when you are ready, don't think that you have to do it for any reason other

than when you want to do it and that's, that was my message.

It's literally when you're ready to do it, there is no pressure and when you do decide

to do it, know that you will have so much support.

I've seen so much support that I had no idea was going to come at me and I said, I'm

a nobody in the football world so I, and I know disrespect to myself, I understand that.

But if a current AFL player was to come out, the support that they are going to receive

from their club, the fans, the AFL community, the queer community is going to be amazing

and the impact that they will have, they, they actually won't know what that would

look like.

It's going to be crazy.