Ukraine eye Cleary boost as game continues against odds
- Author
- Timestamp
Ukraine officials are hoping that Jett Cleary will make his Test debut in the end-of-season European Championships, as Australian-based players prepare to take on Thailand in June.
Ukraine coach Dan Beardshaw has been in discussions with Cleary about playing alongside his cousin Phoenix Death, the son of former NRL hooker Jason Death, who has already represented their country of heritage.
Cleary, who plays for the Warriors, and his superstar brother, Nathan, qualify for Ukraine through their maternal grandmother Marie, as do Phoenix and Cruz Death, who is in Penrith's SG Ball team, as their mothers are sisters.
It looks like you may be using adblocking software to view this site.
Many features on the site, such as video playback, may not work properly when using adblocking software.
Please whitelist our domain or disable your adblocker to access all features and videos.
Jett Cleary takes the field
Other up and coming NRL players eligible for Ukraine include the Hromow brothers, Owen and Yuri, who play for Canberra and Cronulla respectively.
Despite the many obstacles faced by Ukraine since Russia’s 2022 invasion, Ukrainian Rugby League president Artur Martyrosian has not only kept the game going domestically but is now working to introduce a wheelchair competition.
At international level, Ukraine has drawn on heritage players to compete in World Cup qualifiers and other tournaments.
Ukraine will face Italy on October 18 and Greece on October 22 in Euro C and Ukraine Heritage Rugby League president Matt Girvan said Cleary, who qualifies through his maternal grandmother, was among the players being considered for selection.
“I think Jett Cleary is quite keen to make his debut for Ukraine at the European Championships,” Girvan said of the 21-year-old, who last weekend steered the Warriors to their first Jersey Flegg win against Kaiviti Silktails.
“Our coach Dan Beardshaw is in regular contact with Jett about how he’s going with his footy and the move over to New Zealand.
“He is pretty keen and committed, and one of his cousins, Phoenix, has played for Ukraine in the European U19s last year.”
Another player to have represented Ukraine is Yuri Hromow, who plays in the backrow for Cronulla’s SG Ball team after joining the Sharks this season from Canberra.
Hromow played for Ukraine Trident against South Sudan Buffaloes in 2023 after Beardshaw initially tried to recruit his older brother Owen, who is a member of the Raiders Jersey Flegg squad.
“The Ukraine coach was looking around for players and he contacted my dad to ask if Owen was Ukrainian,” Yuri told NRL.com.
“Owen couldn’t play because he was in pre-season training with the Raiders, but dad said, ‘he has got a younger brother who would love to play’.
“Owen was pretty jealous when I played for Ukraine, and it would be one of my goals to play with him.
“I have always known that I was Ukrainian, but I never knew too much about it. My grandfather came to Australia with his parents to escape the war.
It means a lot to my family. One of my dad’s aunties is really involved with the family back in Ukraine, she can speak Ukrainian, and she was just so happy that I played for Ukraine.
The Ukraine Trident will play Thailand in an Emerging Nations match at North Sydney Oval on June 8 as part of the Beer, Footy, Food Festival headlined by the Bears v Panthers NSW Cup clash.
Beardshaw will then select seven heritage players for the European Championships.
The remaining squad members will be drawn from the domestic competition in Ukraine, which is being reduced to nines rather than 13-aside as playing numbers have been reduced due to the war.
Ukraine has also received support from England, with Keighley Cougars providing the team’s playing kit after the Australian host of The Last Leg, Adam Hills, who is also president of the Rugby Football League, recounted a recent conversation he had with Martyrosian on UK TV.
“He said our competition starts up again in May this year, but we don’t have enough men to play 13-aside at the moment so we are going to have to play Nines because so many men have just been drafted into the army,” Hills said.
“I said to him, ‘what do you do in the army’, and I am thinking maybe he is in an office somewhere, but he said, ‘I am an anti-aircraft gunner’, and he sent me a photo of himself behind a machine gun.
“He’s in the middle of a warzone and all we did was chat about rugby league for an hour.”
For anyone looking to get involved or discuss sponsorship opportunities, please contact Ukrainian Heritage Rugby League at ukranianheritagerl@gmail.com
