June 11, 2026 — 11:54amRoosters coach Trent Robinson says Kane Evans’ emotional coming out as gay has been a source of pride and reflection for his club given his former player didn’t feel comfortable enough to do so during his playing career.Evans became just the second player to come out in professional Australian rugby league this week, after delivering a confronting interview on Nine’s 100% Footy that detailed his battles with alcohol, substance addiction and suicidal thoughts while wrestling with his sexuality.The former Tricolours back-rower said Robinson had been instrumental in his recent recovery and paid four weeks of Evans’ rent out of his own pocket after he had been homeless. The Roosters have also helped finance Evans’ ongoing mental health treatment after a stint in a rehabilitation clinic.But Robinson deflected any praise on Thursday and instead focused on why Evans had felt he needed to hide his sexuality during a 74-game career at the Roosters.“I’m really proud of the club, but we still had a guy here for six years that didn’t feel open enough to say that he was gay while he was here,” Robinson said.“There’s a lot of positivity coming towards Kane, and then even towards us, but we’re still not at a place where somebody can come out while they’re playing.Roosters coach Trent Robinson has been a key figure in supporting Kane Evans.Kate Geraghty“And so the reflection for me has been that we do things to support our players and former players, and we try and do our best, but have we got the complete right environment? I think we can be better.“I think there has been positivity this week, and there should be towards Kane because he’s the brave one. Towards us, I think it should be a reflection on how do we do better.“There are more gay players in the game – there has to be – and we’re still not at a point where they will come out in the male game. They will in the women’s game but not in the male game.”Evans’ coming out has been met with support from across rugby league, with the likes of NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo, Immortal Andrew Johns and pioneering former Kangaroos Test star Ian Roberts all saying Evans’ courageous move has the potential to change lives.Kane Evans playing for the Roosters in 2015.Getty ImagesAbdo said on Tuesday that while the NRL first raised the prospect of introducing a Pride Round to celebrate sexual diversity in 2022, there is no specific plan to revisit the concept “on the agenda at the moment, but that’s not to say that will be the case down the track.”Robinson has spent time exploring how to make his own dressing room and club a welcoming place for LGBTQ+ people throughout his coaching career, detailing a focus on changing language and behaviour under his stewardship with this masthead in 2023.Asked how rugby league changes for the better on Thursday, Robinson said: A step forward for me would be that’s all I’ve tried to sort of reflect on is why didn’t [Evans] feel comfortable [with his sexuality] at the time?“And some of that’s personal with Kane, but some of that’s the environment we create.“We just need to create an environment where somebody can be themselves, so they know that they’re going to be accepted, that the language we use in clubs is in the right way, the way that we interact, and the way that we casually reference each other is in the right way.“And hopefully whoever is out there that feels really comfortable in their environment can do what Kane did, at a young age, and not feel the pain that Kane and others have felt for a period of time.”If you are worried about your own or someone else’s mental health, you can contact the Mental Health Line on 1800 011 511 or Lifeline on 13 11 14.Dan Walsh is a sports reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.Billie Eder is a sports reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.From our partners