One of the two trans netball stars who have been banned from playing in a Victorian league has lashed out at the decision and made a stunning claim about the rival team that threatened to boycott matches she played in.
Manawa Aranui played men’s netball at a high level before transitioning and playing for the Melton Central Football and Netball Club.
Last week rival side Melton South declared its players ‘do not feel safe’ playing against Central’s two trans players and threatened to boycott matches against the team.
On Wednesday, the Riddell District Netball League (RDNL) announced the two Melton Central players have been banned from the remainder of this year’s competition ‘on the premise that both participants exhibit superior, stamina and physique over their competitors deeming Section 42 of the Sex Discrimination Act relevant’.
That section of the act allows competitions to exclude gender-diverse players due to concerns about their ‘strength, stamina or physique’.
The statement drew a fiery response from Aranui on Facebook.
Netball player Manawa Aranui (pictured) has hit back with a furious statement after she and a fellow trans teammate were banned from playing in a Victorian league on Wednesday
Aranui (pictured shooting for goal) hit out at ‘bigots’ for telling lies about her
‘I’ve sat quietly long enough while this narrative brewed and I’ve been dragged—publicly and without consent — into a conversation where both my character and identity have been attacked,’ she wrote.
‘This won’t be a long novel — because frankly, these bigots don’t deserve my time or energy … Melton South Football Netball Club and your Netball Coordinator/players: you’re entitled to your opinions, but let’s clear some things up.
‘Your head coach tried to recruit me to play for your club. Yes — YOUR HEAD COACH TRIED TO RECRUIT ME.
‘The same club now publicly speaking out against me, bashing me, and attacking the trans/non-binary community in the media, is the very club whose head coach approached me to join you. (Read that again. Let it sink in.) #Hypocrites.’
Aranui went on to ask if her gender identity would be an issue if she was playing for Melton South.
‘You’ve played six quarters against me — AND we played all season last year along side each other for Glen Orden — suddenly NOW I’m “dangerous”?’ she continued.
‘Apparently now, I run full-speed into players and knock them over?
‘We have two umpires on the court to keep the game safe. If I had done what you claim, wouldn’t I have been warned, penalised, or reprimanded?
Aranui claimed that the coach of Melton South – the team that threatened to boycott matches she was playing in – had tried to recruit her
‘For the record: I haven’t been cautioned once — not in this league, or any other I’ve played in.
‘You’re entitled to believe it’s “unfair” for cis women to compete against transgender women. That’s your opinion. But the lies? They need to stop.
‘You’re not out here protecting women’s sport. You’re being malicious, using false narratives to mask your bigotry and personal agendas behind the guise of “safeguarding women’s spaces.”
‘You’ve spread stories, targeted me, and enabled me to become the sole focus of online abuse and sideline harassment from other clubs and their supporters — right here, in a space where I come to play a sport I love. A place I come to laugh, sweat, compete, and find community.
‘I hope you’re proud of that. And I hope no child in your families ever has to endure what you’ve subjected me to.’
Aranui also posted an image showing an exchange of text messages between her and an unnamed person who asked if she would be open to ‘playing for us A grade next season’ ‘depending on the rules in RDFNL’.
The RDNL’s ban came shortly after a video surfaced showing Aranui knocking a rival player from the Romsey team to the ground when they collided a completely legal passage of play.
Netball Victoria had previously confirmed it was investigating the issue by engaging an independent expert to assess the concerns raised by multiple players and clubs.
An outraged Aranui (pictured) said she had never been cautioned for her play
Melton South’s netball coordinator Melissa Dawson had told News Corp she would support her players if they chose to forfeit games over safety concerns.
‘One of the players is six foot something – it’s ridiculous,’ she said. ‘Netball Victoria needs to put the safety of biological females first.’
Netball Victoria said it remains committed to inclusion and is following its gender diversity policy developed in consultation with Proud 2 Play and based on national sport inclusion guidelines.
‘We support and welcome netballers of all backgrounds,’ a spokesperson said.
‘That includes gender diverse players who have rights under anti-discrimination laws.’
Netball Victoria’s 2018 bylaw change allows non-binary and transgender players to register and play in female competitions based on self-identified gender, not legal sex.
The Australian Sports Commission (ASC) guidelines on the inclusion of transgender athletes state that sports must comply with the Sex Discrimination Act, which makes it unlawful to discriminate, harass or victimise people due to their sex or gender identity.
There are exemptions for sports in which unfair advantages or safety risks can be objectively proven.
The ASC states: ‘All Australians should have the opportunity to be involved in sport and physical activity, regardless of their gender, sexual orientation, ability, cultural background or ethnicity.
‘It is important that sporting bodies, from local clubs through to national sporting organisations, reflect the diversity in the communities they are a part of, and that together, we ensure every person is treated with respect and dignity and protected from discrimination.’
In May 2017, the Victorian Equal Opportunity & Human Rights Commission released guidelines on trans and gender diverse inclusion in sport.
They state that sporting organisations will be breaking the law under the Equal Opportunity Act if they exclude people from participating in a sporting activity, or refuse or fail to select them in a team, on the basis of their sex or gender identity.
However, exceptions could apply ‘if strength, stamina or physique is relevant’.
