Teammates Show Support for Aussie Rugby Player Seen in Gay Adult Video

Last week EDGE reported that Australian rugby player Kurt Capewell acknowledged having appeared in an adult gay video, claiming he was duped into it. The video, currently circulating online, has him having sex in a "glory hole" situation. When filmed eight years ago, he was led to believe there was a woman on the other side of the partition.

The 27-year old star player with the Penrith Panthers said he appeared in the video because he needed money and claims he was deceived as to the true nature of the film, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

In a message he sent to his Panthers teammates, Capewell explained that, "I was broke and doing some modeling, then I got talked into doing a porno. Unknown to me but it turned out they put a bloke on the other side of the wall.

"Now it's resurfacing in group chats and I wanted to let you all know so you could hear it from me and so you all know the full story."

Capewell added: "I'm terribly embarrassed and ashamed even though it happened when I was so young."

But it turns out that the athlete had nothing to worry about from his fellow Panthers. Capewell has received nothing but support from his teammates, in sharp contrast to what would have happened just a few years ago if a pro athlete appeared in a gay porn video.

Teammate Josh Mansour spoke with the Herald, calling Capewell "Super brave" for owning up to the video and saying his foremost concern is Capewell's mental health. "I was shocked when I first found out, but I was immediately worried about his welfare," Mansour said. "I didn't want him to do anything stupid. I didn't care about anything else but him. We all let him know we supported him."

Another teammate, back-rower Liam Martin, joined in: "I'm really proud of the bloke. He said he was dealing it with himself for a while, and once he told us the support from the boys was pretty incredible. We'll always stick by him."

Capewell has spoken frankly about the video with the media, saying that he initially believed the shoot was to model sportswear and detailing how "The organizer used inducements and extra money for being involved in the adult film," reports UK newspaper The Sun.

Capewell's story has encouraged other men who were similarly duped to speak up about the company that reportedly made the video, says news.com.au.

"On AllAustralianBoys.com, the operators promise regular updates with 'hot new Aussie boys' but the website does not disclose how they coerce those boys into agreeing to take part," news.com.au said, going on to note that the site tells its users, "We are often asked, how do we constantly get these guys to do this stuff. It's not easy."

An actor who spoke with the media about being hired to be on the other side of the wall from young men in such videos "said men would be asked to strip down, put on headphones and watch pornography and he naively assumed they understood what they were there for," recounted UK newspaper the Daily Mail.

"From my perspective inside the contraption I didn't know how they couldn't be," the actor said. "But I am now quite certain they were not – or not fully."