How the Bondi stabbing horror brought cross-code rivals the Roosters and Sydney Swans closer together
- Swans coach John Longmire said tragedy hit ‘so close to home’
- Six victims died from stab wounds in an attack in Sydney’s east
Sydney Swans coach John Longmire has revealed he has spoken to his NRL colleague Trent Robinson about their communities supporting each other in the wake of the deadly Bondi Junction stabbing attack.
The AFL’s Swans and the NRL’s Roosters, along with Super Rugby’s NSW Waratahs, are professional sports clubs most closely associated with the area, all based at nearby Moore Park.
“This is our local community,” Longmire told reporters Tuesday, saying the tragedy was “so close to home.”
“These are the people who come to support our clubs and to have it so close to home… it’s a terrible tragedy happening in our backyard.”
Longmire said he had spoken to Roosters coach Robinson about the community coming together to support each other as the nation mourns the dead.
Swans coach John Longmire has revealed he spoke to NRL colleague Trent Robinson about their communities supporting each other in the aftermath of the Bondi Junction stabbing
The Swans are based at Moore Park in Sydney’s east, along with Trent Robinson’s Roosters (pictured) and the NSW Waratahs rugby team
Five women and one man were killed in the stabbing attack at the Bondi Junction Westfield shopping center on Saturday, while seven victims remain in hospital, including a little girl, whose condition has improved from critical to serious.
The killer, 40-year-old Queensland man Joel Cauchi, was shot dead at the scene by police.
“I was talking to Trent Robinson about it last night, you know, these are our clubs’ grounds,” Longmire said.
“It’s only a five-minute drive and all our kids go there [Bondi Junction Westfield]our children’s families go there, our friends.
The death of Ashlee Good (pictured) hit North Melbourne AFL coach Alastair Clarkson especially hard as her father Kerry was a club legend
“We go there, we travel there all the time. And by some luck, our friends and our family weren’t there, but a lot of people were.”
The AFL club met at training on Monday to speak to players and families about the attack, and to join the wider Sydney community in mourning.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who laid flowers at the scene with NSW Premier Chris Minns on Sunday, said it was a difficult time as the nation was grieving.
“At the same time, there are extraordinary acts of heroism that we applaud,” Albanese said.
Since the attack, official flags have been flown at half-mast and the sails of the Sydney Opera House were illuminated with a black ribbon on Monday evening.
A permanent memorial is being considered near the shopping center site.