NRL under fire for embarrassing Anzac Day social media blunder in since deleted post

The NRL has come under fire for a social media post designed to pump up fans for the Anzac Day triple header. As footy fans eagerly awaited Anzac Round to get underway, the NRL copped fierce backlash for failing to pay tribute to the New Zealand troops in a social media post.

Fans and commentators were quick to pounce on the blunder, with the post taken down a few hours later. The video published on the NRL’s X account was captioned: "In Round 8 of the Telstra Premiership, the game will have the opportunity to honour and commemorate the generations of Australian servicemen and women who have defended our values and freedoms, in wars, conflicts and peace operations. ANZAC Round: recognsing (sic) resilience & unity."

The failure to mention the New Zealand servicemen and women did not sit well with the NRL community. "Can’t believe NRL failed to mention the New Zealanders,” Sky Sports commentator Jason Costigan wrote.

"After all, it is Anzac Day this week! We all make mistakes but this must be called out! Remember, New Zealand has been part of Australia’s premier Rugby League competition for almost three decades!"

And he was far from the only fan to take exception to the disrespectful post. "You may wish to take a minute and reflect on what ANZAC stands for," one wrote. While another added: "What it’s an abbreviation of? And then — as a competition with a team from New Zealand — look at what’s missing from your post."

Others chipped in that it was blatantly disrespectful to not honour both the Australian and New Zealand men and women who made sacrifices for their respective countries. Amid mounting pressure for the post to be taken down, it was deleted.

Later, a new NRL post went out with New Zealand included. "In Round 8 we’ll honour and commemorate the generations of Australian and New Zealand servicemen and women who have defended our values and freedoms, in wars, conflicts, and peace operations," the post read.

NRL fans slam Rabbitohs' Anzac Day jersey

NRL fans were left confused on Anzac Day after tuning in to the Souths and Melbourne clash only to find the Rabbitohs side looking unrecognisable. In a run-on side without star player Latrell Mitchell and with a host of players who didn't feature for the Bunnies until this season, you would be forgiven for not knowing the table-topping Storm's opponents were the Rabbitohs, largely due to their choice of jersey.

In what was the third NRL game on Anzac Day, the Storm wore a commemorative purple and black striped jersey with a red poppy on the chest. But the Rabbitohs looked like a completely different team, deciding against going with their iconic red and green vertical stripes.

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Instead, the only green or red that was seen was on the club's socks, with their usual jersey replaced entirely with a predominately white and navy blue strip. In a kit that looked more like that of the Storm than Souths, fans had to do a double-take to check who Melbourne were facing.

The jersey selection was even more confusing for fans due to the Rabbitohs replacing the Warriors in the annual Anzac Day fixture against Melbourne. And many footy fans were also left angry that whoever was in charge of the kit choice decided to not respect the colours of what is the NRL's oldest team.