Maroons star's wife calls out disgusting social media abuse
The NRL world is rallying around Queensland Maroons skipper Ali Brigginshaw after her partner Kate revealed the vile social media abuse that had been sent their way.
Brigginshaw and the Maroons find themselves down 2-0 in the State of Origin series with the Blues looking for a clean sweep next week at McDonald Jones Stadium.
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But in the wake of the second contest, when the Blues prevailed 26-6 at Allianz Stadium, Kate revealed the family had been targeted by horrific online abuse.
Taking to Instagram she exposed the extent to which some messages had gone with one telling the family to 'kill themselves'.
'Mental health affects everyone, in particular athletes,' she wrote.
'Anyone in the public eye is aware they open themselves up to opinion and scrutiny, however there is a fine line between a reasonable comment/dm and what is honestly far beyond anything even remotely reasonable, which is what Ali and our family have been subjected to for the last month.
'Bashing people on social media isn't cool.
'You think you're showing something bad about someone else when you're really showing something bad about yourself.
'Normal people don't go around vomiting hate about individuals they know absolutely nothing about, or send derogatory, sexist or cruel dms encouraging someone to kill themselves.
'Ironically, the same people showing support for MH (mental health) awareness and 'it ain't weak to speak' are the same people leaving comments and sending those disgusting dms.
'It is incredibly damaging and dangerous and I seriously encourage all those who do participate to think before leaving a comment or sending a dm about whether they would say those things to someone they loved.'
Kate's post attracted heavy support from those across the NRL community with fans rushing to throw their arms around the family.
One wrote on X: 'The absolute gutless dogs who are threatening Ali Brigginshaw (or indeed anyone) online need to get the book thrown at them.'
A second added: 'You could not meet a nicer person than Ali Brigginshaw. A true Queenslander, one who should be respected and not abused by cowards.'
A third posted: 'It's one thing to comment about her playing ability or career moves. It's a totally different thing to comment on her personal life or her as a person. That goes for any human on the planet. Ali has done more for international women's sport than any bloke in this comment section who probably have daughters that see her as a role model.'
Brigginshaw has been a stalwart of the Maroons' State of Origin squad since making her debut back in 2018.
Throughout an illustrious career, the 35-year-old has pulled on the Queensland jersey 11 times while also playing 25 Tests for Australia.
The NRLW icon will be hoping to go out on top and avoid a clean sweep when the two states lock horns next week.
While there was concern she might miss out on selection for the third and final game of the series, selectors elected to give the veteran a shot at an Origin swan song.
The third State of Origin contest will take place on May 29 at McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle from 7:45pm (AEST).
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