Roosters win premiership and Jewish hearts

The Sydney Roosters won the NRL Premiership on Sunday night – but regardless of the result, they had already won the hearts of the Jewish community.

The club – which prevailed 19-18 in a thrilling rugby league decider against a spirited Newcastle Knights side – have been staunch supporters of the Jewish community, especially in the aftermath of the December 14 Bondi Beach massacre, Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-CEO Alex Ryvchin said.

“The Roosters reached out amid two years of escalating attacks on the Jewish community, with fire-bombings and all the rest,” he said.

“They just wanted to engage. They looked at a segment of the local community that was really suffering and thought ‘how can we help, how can we stand with them’. That was such a tremendous thing.”

Ryvchin said that while sport “can’t unbreak a broken heart or heal such trauma and wounds, it gives us hope and a happy distraction when we need it the most.

“I’ve gotten to know the Roosters and they’re more than just a sporting team,” he said.

“They conduct themselves with such dignity, empathy and pride … a real example to everybody. For all their sacrifice and hard work, and the joy they’ve brought to people, I’m just really thrilled they won on Sunday.”

Roosters players visited Chabad of Bondi less than a week before the Chanukah terrorist attack, as part of the Operation Noah initiative championed by Rabbi Eli Schlanger, who was killed days later.

They also laid a wreath at Bondi Pavilion in the aftermath of the massacre.

Before the grand final, Roosters players including Mark Nawaqanitawase and Daly Cherry-Evans sprinkled sand from Bondi Beach around the Accor Stadium turf as a tribute to the Bondi massacre victims.

In round one this year, the Roosters also held a special tribute before their home game against the South Sydney Rabbitohs. The 40,000-strong crowd observed a minute’s silence as the faces of all 15 Bondi victims were projected onto Allianz Stadium’s screens. Summer Britvan, the younger sister of 10-year-old Matilda Bee, who was killed in the attack, was invited on to the field for the coin toss.

Footage posted to social media by Michael Britvan on Sunday showed Summer watching the final minutes of the grand final on television and counting down to the siren, then cheering that they had won.

Michael told The AJN, “We’re Bunnies fans at heart, so cheering for the Roosters doesn’t come naturally! But after all the kindness and support they’ve shown the Jewish community, we were genuinely thrilled to see them win this year.

“It was also incredibly touching to see them bring sand from Bondi Beach as a tribute to those who lost their lives last December. That meant a lot to us.”

Roosters CEO Joe Kelly told the Daily Telegraph, “The past 12 months have been incredibly challenging.

“To be able to share this … means so much. We’re incredibly proud to celebrate this premiership with our entire community.”