Lachie joined the Sydney Convicts in 2012 and has played in both our 1st and 2nd team in the position of Second Row / Lock. This is his story.....

"In early 2012, I’d just played a season at a ‘straight’ club and was on my way to quitting a sport I enjoyed but, paradoxically, wasn’t enjoying.

To function in any team sport you need to trust the people next to you, and they need to trust you. For that to happen it’s essential to show them who you are. At that club, I didn’t have full trust in the people next to me. I didn’t feel comfortable showing them who I was.

My uncle, a founder and life member of the Sydney Convicts – a gay and inclusive rugby club, had been needling me to come down to a training session. Recently out of the closet as gay, I was hesitant to join a gay rugby club, but I decided to give it a shot. That night on the drive home with another player, I mulled over two things. Firstly, how warm and welcoming everyone had been at the session, something I hadn’t experienced at the previous club; I felt embraced, not judged. I wasn’t forced onto the imaginary scales I’d felt before, weighing where I’m from, who I like, or how I identify. The only question I remember being asked was, ‘have you played before?’ Which leads to the second thing that stood out for me – how focussed everyone was on rugby.

Looking back I’ve always felt embraced for who I am at the Convicts. ‘Be yourself’ is something of a core value, an unwritten part of the constitution. ‘Tell your story’ is another one, espoused by Tommy, who runs the Pathways program - where new players experience our club for the first time. These values continue to this day and are on display every Saturday our game day, when I see the vibrant and diverse range of people playing, managing, or supporting. I’ve always believed in the club’s power not to just to provide a safe environment for all, but also to affect social change.

In recent years the conversation has shifted, with an often nasty political debate taking place over trans people in sport. The Convicts and other LGBTQ+ inclusive clubs are more important than ever in providing that safe environment and driving social change for our trans and gender diverse friends and family. In 2019 the Convicts once again demonstrated its unwavering commitment to inclusion, signing up to the 2019 Guidelines for the inclusion of transgender and gender diverse people in Sport. Twenty years ago the Convicts may have described itself as a club where gay people can play; in a speech our president spoke of our club as a place where gay and gender diverse people can play. Actions matter, but words do too. We need to be embracing trans and gender diverse people in sport, holding out our arms and being vocal about it, and the Convicts are doing just that.

Sport is one of those rare activities where, while playing, you don’t feel difference. You become a player. The social boundaries that exist normally, such as who you like, how you identify, what you believe, or where you’re from, are not the qualifiers. They melt away. That can be a massive relief if you’re used to being discriminated against or hiding parts of yourself. You can play your heart out and know you’re needed, relied upon, and integral to a common purpose. It can literally be lifesaving. What I love about my club, the Sydney Convicts, is that on any given Saturday there could be a first-nations queer, a transgender person, a bisexual, and a straight cis-male on the field, and the only boundaries I feel are the grassy ones, painted white, at my feet. And that’s also why I’ll never leave."

Lachie's Club Awards:
• Players Player 2012, 2022
• Best and Fairest 2012, 2014, 2022
• Most Outstanding Forward 2014, 2017, 2022
• Most Improved 2015
• Player of the Tournament Purchas Cup 2016
• One Hundred Games 2017

Find out more about playing for us in 2023.