Following the announcement of the return of a Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs Harvey Norman Women’s side last year, we caught up with headliner Kennedy Cherrington who was a surprise inclusion in the Team at the time.
From Rugby Union to League, it was a dream fit for Cherrington when she was extended the marquee contract to join the Belmore-based club. Already playing at the NRLW level, her decision to back the new side in the Harvey Norman Women’s Competition was a surprising one, but one that was a natural fit for a pioneer of women’s sport.
Born in Sydney, Cherrington grew up in Perth where she’d often be found tackling her three brothers in the family backyard alongside sister, Rueben. Less than a decade later, both Cherrington sisters joined the squad to be the first to pull on the blue and white women’s jerseys and play for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs Harvey Norman Women’s Premiership side in 2023.
Announced to the team as a marquee player, Cherrington has brought a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Club from the Cronulla Sharks NSWRL Women’s Premiership team, and the Sydney Roosters and Parramatta Eels NRLW sides.
It hasn’t been an easy road to becoming a marquee player though, both personally and professionally.
Cherrington had to relocate from Perth to Sydney, overcome a serious medical condition and three knee surgeries in order to pursue her football career dreams. At just eight years old, she was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect and in 2007 underwent life-saving open heart surgery. Despite a full recovery, she has had to err on the side of caution with regular checks and is well aware of just how close she came to not being here today.
The reality driving her zest for life and hunger to pursue all opportunities that present themselves: living life to its’ fullest. For Cherrington, that means becoming the best footballer she possibly can be and helping pioneer pathways for women in rugby league:
“I’ve kind of taken that responsibility of being a pioneer to build pathways and have never been fussed about what Club that’s at. It’s just about representation. That’s what’s always been important to me” Cherrington said.
For an experienced NRLW player, it might seem like an odd move to join a club that is just re-entering the women’s premiership competition, but when Cherrington learned of the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs’ ambitions to create pathways, it was a no-brainer.
She had a discussion with the Head Coach, Luke Goodwin, learned a little about the Club history and culture, and how committed the Club was to investing in pathway programs… and the rest was history.
“I’m really excited to come to the Dogs. I’ve had some really good experiences already, you know, seeing the [Canterbury-Bankstown] Leagues Club, the facilities, and their bid for an NRLW side in ’24 or ’25. When Luke toured me around the facilities, he was like this is a dedicated space for mens and womens and I think that’s really important,” Kennedy said.
Not having the separate two teams, and two pathways as separate. You know, it’s one club and you should feel like you’re part of that one club. That was a no-brainer for me because that’s what I’m all about. Like how can you expect one program to do better if you’re treated like an outsider? And that’s what I loved about the Dogs too - it’s not separate. It’s one club, one family.
Whilst she will look to continue to play NRLW alongside the Harvey Norman Women’s competition, the opportunity to grow the sport at Canterbury was far too enticing to miss, and despite a hard decision to leave the Cronulla-Sharks team where she has been long supported, her decision to join the Bulldogs was all but cemented when she received a special phone call ahead of her 2021 Rugby League World Cup Campaign.
“When I made the Jillaroos squad, Phil Gould reached out to me the day after the announcement and he just congratulated me for my efforts and a great season, and I think that was the point in time that I just said, that’s cool.
“You know, Phil Gould being at the top, looking after the Dogs and everything else that he has created there and the environment, I don’t know, it was just a really good feeling and it’s really nice to see that love. I think that’s important because it shows you’ve got great support,” she said.
“I just wanted to thank them [the Bulldogs] for being supporters of the women’s game because it’s hard enough to focus on the men, let alone worry about women who were at another Club. So, I felt like that was the reminder that I had made the best decision in coming here.”
A short acknowledgment from a legend of the sport wasn’t the only thing that drew Cherrington to the Club, as she knows it is actions that speak much louder than words.
“I think that’s what’s important as well, is it’s not just up in the air chat. It’s about bringing the women’s pathway back in and that’s being followed with actions,” Cherrington said of the Bulldogs Club.
“I can’t wait to play with my sister and be amongst the group of girls that Luke’s brought together. I think there’s a really good mixture of experience, future young talent, and some exciting talent. And I really hope that we can come together really well.
“There’s lots of chatter around the Dogs,” she added.
There’s that saying, you know, underdogs. I love underdogs and I think that suits really well with our team.
The Harvey Norman Women’s squad commenced pre-season training in November, with Cherrington and fellow Aussie Jillaroos teammate Holli Wheeler linking up with the team in December following on from their Rugby League World Cup tour. The team competed in their first pre-season invitational trial at the weekend, besting the Western Rams 11 to one at Pride Park, Orange.
To see the full Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs Harvey Norman Women’s Competition side, click here.
