Indigenous Sport Month: Shaylee Bent’s staring down racism and tackling stereotypes head on

She’s only 20, but Dragons star Shaylee Bent has already made an enormous impact on and off the footy field.

Bent, a proud Wiradjuri and Biripi woman, played her first game of rugby league for the Glenmore Park Brumbies when she was 14-years-old.

Now, she’s a two-time NRL Women’s Indigenous All Star.

In 2019, the forward made her NRLW debut for St George and was selected for NSW City and the Australian Women’s 9s squad.

Last year, Bent made her State of Origin debut for NSW and was awarded Dragons Player of the Year.

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Shaylee Bent is a two-time NRL Women’s Indigenous All Star. Picture: Scott Davis/NRL PhotosSource:Supplied

The youngster also works for Link-Up, an organisation that supports Aboriginal people who have been directly impacted by past government policies – in particular those who have been left devastated and disconnected from communities as a result of the Stolen Generations.

This year, Bent is determined to take her footy to another level and inspire young kids across Australia.

My Indigenous heritage brings me so much pride … My mum’s Greek and my dad’s Aboriginal, Irish and Ukrainian. We Aboriginals are the first nations to this country. That’s massive. For us to still be around and proud, it means a lot to me. My favourite custom would definitely be yarning circles and listening to elders pass down their stories. If you’re with a different mob, you learn different stories and about the different ways of stories have been passed down from generation to generation.

I played my first game of rugby league when I was 14 … The under-15s team had too many players and the under-18s team was short. A few of my friends were in that under-18s team and one day they asked if I could play. Dad originally said no because, you know, I was a female. He probably didn’t want my face to get ruined. Also I was very skinny back then. Eventually, he said yes. I remember the first tackle I did was a head high. I used to just run with a swinging arm, because I was so skinny. I’d go in with a swinging arm every time and dad just couldn’t stop cracking up.

In my first year of NRLW, I didn’t have my drivers licence … I would start work at 8am, finish at 3:30pm. Then my dad would finish early, or mum sometimes, and they would drive me straight from Ropes Crossing all the way to Wollongong for training, which was one hour and 40 minutes each way. We wouldn’t get home until after 10pm at night, and that was four times a week. It was tough. And I’m not the only child they do it for, there’s seven of us kids. Our parents have done so much for us.

Growing up, I always knew I was Aboriginal … But, because I didn’t grow up in the country with my cousins, I didn’t have that connection like my cousins. I was more of a city kid, so I never had that strong identity. But when I started working at Link-Up, I learnt so much about my mob and my family. As a caseworker, I reunited people from the Stolen Generations and helped them on their healing journey. Before that, I wasn’t that confident in speaking about The Stolen Generations, because I didn’t have the awareness and knowledge around it. We didn’t really learn about it at school. But working at Link-Up really strengthened my knowledge. I spoke to elders who passed down their stories. It’s made me more confident as an athlete and role model. I know more about my culture now and I can share my culture with others.

Shaylee Bent of the Dragons tackles Ruan Sims of the Roosters during a 2019 NRLW match. Picture: Mark Evans/Getty ImagesSource:Getty Images

As an Indigenous athlete, I feel like I have a responsibility to the kids who look up to me … You’ve got to keep performing and keep yourself in line. You are that role for that generation of kids coming along. On Instagram, I get several messages from young Indigenous kids who say I inspire them and that I give them hope. I feel like I have a responsibility now because I’ve made that elite level. If we want generations to come in, we’ve got to keep performing. And for me, I try to inspire them elsewhere in the community too. It’s not just about football for these kids.

During a camp, I won’t say which camp, but one of the trainers didn’t know about my nationality … He thought I was European or something. I told him that my mum was Greek and my dad was Aboriginal, Ukrainian and Irish. Then he said something like, “oh, so you just pass as Aboriginal.” That kind of comment. I didn’t take offence to it until I went home and told someone and really thought about it. He was a nice guy and meant well, but he probably just wasn’t educated. I’ve also seen it with my Aboriginal teammates who are light-skinned. You see their comments on Instagram, like “How is she Aboriginal? Is she one per cent?” All that stuff. I’ve never experienced anything like that on social media, but I have witnessed it happen to my friends.

Shaylee Bent tackles Maori player Kennedy Cherrington during the All Stars match between Maori and Indigenous at Queensland Bank Country Stadium. Picture: Evan MorganSource:News Corp Australia

If your friend makes comments like that, or someone you think is a good person but just they’re uneducated, address it … Let them know that they are in the wrong. If they don’t know it’s offensive, how are they meant to know? We have to spread the message that it’s not OK. If you put that person into place, they’ll know next time not to say it. We also need to talk about (experiences of racism), we need to discuss it with family and not keep it in, because it does bottle up.

One thing that would help Indigenous women and girls excel in rugby league is extra support … I feel like there needs to be something that allows the girls to get together a few times a year. In the Indigenous community, a lot of things happen with family. Things come up that can stop you, or young girls and boys, from playing. Trouble at home, financial issues, things like that. It’s happened to me too. But having a safe place, maybe something like a centre of excellence, where the kids can come, I believe that would help.

The best thing about Indigenous All Stars is that we are recognised as one … We’re blackfellas fighting for the same thing, we’re recognised as the First Nations, we’re not second tier to anyone. That game really allows us to get that out there to the community, to show them that we are still fighting and playing. At my first All Stars camp, I wasn’t that confident with cultural identity. We all have our own stories, not everyone grew up on community, so not everyone is so strongly cultural. But just being around the older girls and hearing the stories, we had yarning circles. All Stars gives each and every one of us an opportunity to connect. The Maori all stars, they’re also the First Nations of their country too. So it’s two First Nations teams going together, like how it was back in the day. It’s another level, All Stars is one of those games that means more because you’re fighting for something different.

Shaylee Bent playing for the Eels in 2017.Source:News Corp Australia

This year has almost been a kick up the bum for me … I didn’t make Origin. I played in the Queensland competition, which was only seven weeks. I was playing centre, not the usual position I play at rep level. But I’ve got to take it on the chin, it is what it is. So this year, my focus is about performing on the field. Sponsorship and all that extra stuff, it doesn’t mean as much. I need to earn the right on the field, before I earn the right anywhere else. Especially in the NRLW.

NRLW expansion one hundred per cent needed to happen … It’s not just the same girls anymore, there are so many players who deserve opportunities. It’s the best decision the NRL has ever made. Clubs can’t just keep picking the same girls now, they’ve got to look elsewhere.

I would love to see the Eels in the NRLW because I feel like they have supported the women’s game … Parramatta was actually my first club, I played in their first ever Tarsha Gale Cup team. I also used to cheerlead for Parramatta as a young girl. There’s a lot of talent from western Sydney who’s had to go elsewhere, especially from the Penrith area. There’s Madison Ashby, who went to rugby sevens. There’s Mahalia Murphy, who has played sevens, Wallaroos and league. If Penrith can get the women’s game growing and get an NRLW side, it could be such a strong side. A lot of us are from there. That said, I absolutely love the Dragons, they’ve been so loyal to me. I would love to stay at the Dragons for my career.

Dad instilled one saying into all us kids – be a leader, not a follower … Especially growing up, that crucial decision, whether you lead or follow, can change your whole life. And it’s stuck with me, I say it almost every day. I would pass on this advice to any girls or women. I would also tell them to embrace opportunities. If someone asks you to run water or do an appearance, just say yes. You never know what it can lead to.

Footy has opened so many doors and I’ll never take that for granted … Growing up, we were just the average family. We didn’t have much. I’d never been overseas before, but I played in New Zealand because of football. I’ve also played in Western Australia. I have so many work opportunities at the moment, because I stayed in the game. I am the first person in my family, not just immediate but extended family, to graduate from high school. And I’m the first person in my family who has gone to university.

One thing I always crave is slushies. I love 7/11 slushies … But it can’t be runny, it’s got to be frosty and cold. It’s weird, I don’t like soft drinks, but I love slushies. Coke and raspberry are the best flavours and I mixed them.

Originally published asFooty star leading the way for generations to follow

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