Pies keen to bring back cheerleaders
The AFL could 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.
While Collingwood has not revealed specifics of its plan, former Melbourne Storm cheerleader, Jinelle Davidson, seems to have inadvertently let the cat out of the bag.
"There are Collingwood cheerleaders try-outs today, going for a hip-hop team," Davidson told Triple M on Thursday.
Awkwardly, Davidson's revelation came on the radio station fronted by Collingwood president Eddie McGuire.
McGuire was reluctant to divulge much information, but said "there might be an announcement".
Carlton's Bluebirds strut their stuff at a match in 1990. Source: Getty
A Magpies spokesman told Fairfax that auditions were taking place, but he insisted 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 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.
Cheerleaders are still a feature of NRL matches. Source: Getty
