Collingwood set to bring back cheerleaders to the AFL

Yahoo7

Wed, 26 Mar 2014, 10:27 pm

The AFL is set to return to a bygone era with Collingwood poised to re-introduce cheerleaders to the game.

While cheerleaders are a staple of the match day experience in the NRL, they haven't been seen at VFL/AFL games since the days of Sydney's Swanettes and Carlton's Bluebirds.

Collingwood was forced to confirm the secret plan on Thursday morning after former Melbourne Storm cheerleader, Jinelle Davidson, inadvertently let the cat out of the bag.

"There are Collingwood cheerleader try-outs today, going for a hip-hop team," Davidson told Triple M.

Awkwardly, Davidson's revelation came on the radio program hosted by Collingwood president Eddie McGuire.

After a long silence, McGuire caved and admitted "there might be an announcement" imminent.

Carlton's Bluebirds strut their stuff at a match in 1990. Source: Getty

"It's something new, innovative and they had the auditions yesterday and it was one of the biggest turnouts ever," McGuire revealed when he was pressed by his co-hosts for more information.

McGuire insisted the cheerleaders would not be "just dancing girls" and hinted there could be men and women in the team.

"There could well be (male and female dancers)," he said.

"I can't give too much away, but of course it will have a modern twist to it and it will be artistic.

"We're giving other people the chance to bask in the glory of the Collingwood Football Club. We're trying to extend our glow to other people, not just footballers."

Cheerleaders are still a feature of NRL matches. Source: Getty

A Magpies spokesman told Fairfax that the club was looking into the addition of dancers, not cheerleaders.

South Sydney bucked the NRL trend back in 2007 when co-owner Russell Crowe led a move to discard cheerleaders.

At the time, Crowe said cheerleaders "made a lot of people uncomfortable" and the move was designed to make the NRL more accessible for families and females.

In 2009, there were calls for all NRL clubs to abandon cheerleaders in the wake of the infamous Cronulla Sharks sex scandal.

Melbournian Davidson, 27, is on her way to the United States after she was selected to join the iconic cheer squad of the Dallas Cowboys NFL franchise.