If you stayed in your seats throughout round 23’s “battle of the west” last season between Parramatta and Penrith, you might have witnessed some unusual on-field tactics. That includes players in Parramatta kit holding hands to form an unbroken, snaking defensive line, with the player on one end going in to make a tackle. You might have heard repetitive chanting or been confused by some creative rule interpretations. The players weren’t from the Eels or the Panthers, but from three junior schools in Parramatta, and the game was a hybrid of league and the south Asian team-based tackling sport kabaddi, which translates as “holding hands”. This week, the NRL celebrates its fourth Multicultural Round, but the work of bringing new communities to the game goes on year round. And it seems to be paying off. This year a record 65 national heritages are represented in the NRL and NRLW, from American Samoa to Zimbabwe. About a third of NRL players were born overseas and almost half have at least one parent born overseas.