Indigenous star Adam Briggs slams 'pathetic' Melbourne Storm for cancelling Welcome to Country ceremony on Anzac Day
Wurundjeri elder Aunty Joy Murphy had been scheduled to deliver the Welcome to Country at AAMI Park before Friday night's clash against the South Sydney Rabbitohs.
Performances by Māori group Ngā Mātai Pūrua and Wurundjeri dance group Djirri Djirri were also organised for the evening.
However, as performers rehearsed on the field, Murphy said she was informed by the club's board that they no longer wanted the Welcome to Country to proceed.
Following the decision, both Ngā Mātai Pūrua and Djirri Djirri withdrew from performing.
Storm chairman Matt Tripp said the issue arose from a misunderstanding between the board and management.
Aboriginal Australian rapper, record label owner, comedy writer, actor and author Briggs has slammed the Storm for scrapping the Welcome to Country ceremony
Wurundjeri elder Aunty Joy Murphy says she doesn't understand why the ceremony was cancelled on Anzac Day
Briggs, who used to support the Storm, says the actions of the club were a 'cop out'.
'It's pretty pathetic, to be honest, they made this call a while back to wind back Welcome to Country ceremonies and Indigenous engagement,' Briggs told ABC.
'It's unsurprising and their claim that it was a miscommunication is a cop out.
'Why would Melbourne Storm buckle, placate to wannabe neo-Nazis, if that is what in fact drove their decision earlier in the day?'
Briggs said he was worried that the Welcome to Country ceremonies were being cast in a 'negative light'.
'It's not a welcome to the country, it's a welcome to country - it's about the history of the land they're a part of,' he said.
Tripp stated the board had only approved Welcome to Country ceremonies for multicultural and Indigenous rounds, but not Anzac Day.
However, Aunty Joy Murphy says she was told that the Welcome to Country was cancelled by the board because of the booing of Uncle Mark Brown at the Anzac Dawn Service in Melbourne.
Melbourne Storm officials have put attributed the incident to an internal miscommunication
Anzac Day commemorations were held at AAMI Park and an Acknowledgement of Country was displayed on the big screens at the ground
'When I got in he said it was about the booing that happened and something like protecting or looking after you," she explained to ABC News Breakfast.
'I don't need protecting … I don't understand it.'
The Djirri Djirri dance group claim they were told that they were told the same thing.
'We Djirri Djirri were invited to dance alongside our Mäori Whanau Ngã Matai Púrua Kapa Haka after Aunty Joy Murphy Wandin's Welcome to Country,' they said in a statement.
'We arrived at 2.30pm and have been in and out of the change room to rehearse, it has been raining all day and we have multiple babies and kids with us waiting in the rain.
'After our final rehearsal we were approached by Melbourne Storm CEO Justin Rodski saying they are so grateful to have us all dancing together, but tonight the Board doesn't feel comfortable having a Welcome to Country because of what happened in regards to the booing of Uncle Mark Brown at the ANZAC Dawn Service.
'They were also "happy" for us to still dance to represent the "Welcome" but we were in shock and disbelief.'
Tripp said he was unaware of the disturbance at Melbourne's dawn service earlier that day.
Bunurong elder Uncle Mark Brown was booed during Anzac Day proceedings in Melbourne
On Monday, Tripp said the Storm had to fix its relationship with its Indigenous supporters.
'It has disappointed me beyond words,' Tripp told The Age.
'I am acutely aware of the many different cultures and races we have involved in our football club and our supporter base.
'Like I do with anything within the club, I guard that with my life and I want to protect that at all costs.
'To have a miscommunication deem us as non-sensitive to Welcome to Country and beyond that, a part of Australian customs, that has upset me greatly.'
Early on Anzac Day, far-right agitators booed and heckled Bunurong elder Uncle Mark Brown during his Welcome to Country at Melbourne's Shrine of Remembrance.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the actions, saying, 'A neo-Nazi disrupting Anzac Day is abhorrent, un-Australian, and disgraceful. The people responsible must face the full force of the law.'
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said the incident was 'beyond disrespectful' and Defence Minister Richard Marles urged Australians to focus on the sacrifices of Anzac soldiers.
RSL Victoria president Robert Webster praised the crowd for drowning out the hecklers with applause, stating it reflected the respect the occasion deserved.
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