Rugby Australia said on Tuesday it would not sanction Israel Folau for his comments on homosexuality posted on social media as the Wallabies superstar revealed he was willing to walk away from the sport over his religious beliefs.
The decision came after Folau defended the post late on Monday on www.playersvoice.com.au, a website for sportspeople to air their views, saying he had written them “honestly and from the heart”.
“Rugby Australia will not sanction Israel Folau for his comment posted on a social media platform on April 4,” said a statement from the sport’s governing body.
“Anyone who knows me knows I am not the type to upset people intentionally,” the 29-year-old wrote, adding that suggestions he was bigoted “could not be further from the truth”.
Folau also hit out at Rugby Australia chief Raelene Castle for her comments about him after he was summoned to a meeting with the governing body, which has an inclusion policy to stop discrimination, over his remarks.
Castle had said the star had agreed to “think about” the impact of his posts and had acknowledged his comments could have been made “in a more respectful way”.
I hope this will provide some context. My piece on @PlayersVoice is now live: https://t.co/c1qR1fu5Zz pic.twitter.com/nEClfXCtcM
— Israel Folau (@IzzyFolau) 16 April 2018
“I felt Raelene misrepresented my position and my comments, and did so to appease other people, which is an issue I need to discuss with her and others at Rugby Australia,” he wrote.
Despite Folau’s criticism of Castle, the rugby chief said Tuesday that “we accept Israel’s position” and that the playersvoice post “provided context behind his social media comment”.
Folau also revealed he told Castle he was ready to walk away from his contract immediately “if she felt the situation had become untenable – that I was hurting Rugby Australia, its sponsors and the Australian rugby community to such a degree that things couldn’t be worked through”.
The offer to break the contract, which finishes this year, was not in order that he could return to rugby league, Folau added, amid speculation that several National Rugby League (NRL) clubs were interested in signing him.
“At no stage over the past two weeks have I wanted that to happen,” he added.
“This is not about money or bargaining power or contracts. It’s about what I believe in and never compromising that, because my faith is far more important to me than my career and always will be.”
Rugby Australia chief Raelene Castle.
Rugby Australia have been trying to balance their desire to re-sign Folau with the demands of leading sponsors including national airline Qantas, who made it clear to the governing body that it was not happy with Folau’s posting.
New South Wales Waratahs coach Daryl Gibson said he wanted his player to stay in the code, adding that he knew discussions were continuing between Rugby Australia and Folau.
“We want Israel to stay in rugby, he enjoys the game and so our immediate concern is making sure he stays in rugby,” Gibson told reporters on Tuesday. “There hasn’t been a timeframe put on those discussions.”
