Hockey ACT Pride Round - Where it began...
Published Fri 29 Jul 2022
Hockey ACT Pride Round – Where it all began…
As we come into the 5th year of celebrating the Hockey ACT Pride Round, we reflect on where it started, and the importance of the round to members of the community.
Former Lakers and current CL1 Old Canberrans’ player, Dan Borrett, reflects on his journey and the early makings of Pride Round in 2018.
My name is Daniel Borrett, I have played hockey in Canberra my whole life.
When I started playing Hookin2Hockey (Minkey as it was known back then) for Old Canberrans (Waratah) at the age of 3 or 4, I remember running around Southwell Park or Ainslie Oval with Seyi Onitiri teaching us how to hold a stick and hit a ball.
Fast forward 15 or so years when I started playing first grade with the same club I had always played with, Old Canberrans. I had grown up playing with Old Canberrans whilst I was living in Canberra so when I returned to Canberra at 16 after not playing hockey at all for 3 years, it really felt like the only choice of who to play for.
I started to try out for ACT rep teams and found myself playing in the ACT under 21’s from the age of 19. I also played in the rep indoor teams. I was given a scholarship with the ACT Academy of Sport and went on to play for the Lakers. I spent a year playing overseas in the Belgium competition before returning to Canberra.
Then I came out. Or really, instead of making a big deal of it, I started to bring my boyfriend to Hockey and would introduce him as such. I chose to live my life the way I wanted too and by showing others it was not a big deal, it was never a big deal for others. My teammates at Old Canberrans were always nothing but supportive and caring. They would include my boyfriend in the post-match drinks and encourage him to attend club events.
There were of course some negatives throughout the time, I remember playing a game of first grade and hearing people in the crowd from other clubs calling out things like “where’s your husband” and hearing them laughing at me. Any time I raised any concerns, I knew that my teammates from Old Canberrans had my back.
I put my hand up to coach a few Hockey ACT representative teams and coached both Indoor and outdoor rep teams to various regional and state level competitions. The last of which was an under 15s state tournament in Wollongong. It sticks in my memory as it was really the first time where players would use various slang words in general conversation, saying how “Gay” things were, but not truly understanding how damaging it can be.
Whilst I know it was not directed at me or anyone else on the bus, I stopped the bus and told the players how offensive it was and that they should start to be a bit more aware of what they were saying, and when pushed as to why it was an issue, I told the players on the bus that I was gay and that I would not tolerate the language any further.
At the end of the week, one of the parents came to thank me for coaching. She said she felt that her son was not only a better hockey player, but a better person from the lessons he learned during the week.
I remember coming back to Canberra and wondering if more could be done to ensure others would experience the same level of support as I received from Old Canberrans. I spoke to some mates from other clubs to see what the culture was like in their clubs and whilst most were supportive in theory, it was largely hypothetical at the time.
That is when Seyi and Renae Onitiri approached me with their idea to introduce the Fair Go, Pride in Sport Round in Hockey ACT. I agreed and they did all the work to facilitate our teams wearing the rainbow socks and get the messaging out into the Hockey community. I selected to have it against ANU because at the time, the only other openly gay guys I knew were playing for ANU so it felt appropriate to celebrate the Pride Round with ANU.
I remember the first year being pretty low key, just Old Canberrans vs ANU with us wearing different socks. But the following year, seeing more clubs become involved, and all the grades. I remember seeing teams in the SL2 and SL3 grades rocking socks, face paint, bandanas and ribbons and feeling like Seyi and OCHC had supported this initiative for me perhaps without fully understanding the impact this could have on up-and-coming juniors and players at all levels.
When I reflect on the last 15 years playing first grade with Old Canberrans, I can’t help but to think about the Pride Round and the small role it may have played on others within our sporting community feeling accepted and supported.
