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By Josh Massoud From: The Daily Telegraph August 28, 2009 12:00AM
THESE are the family photos that show why Bulldogs star Hazem El Masri's reputation as a proud father counts for even more than his bulging scrapbook of footballing testimonies.
And they will form part of an emotional nine-minute tribute video to cap his farewell home game on Sunday.
Gallery special: See more heart-warming pics of Hazem and his family here
But there's still one special person El Masri and his wife Arwa - who personally compiled the video - are trying to coax along along to witness its screening live at ANZ Stadium.
That person is El Masri's mother, Amal. Having reluctantly allowed her son to switch from soccer to rugby league as a teenager, Amal has since struggled to watch El Masri's matches live - out of fear that her boy might suffer an injury.
She has attended just one of El Masri's 313 NRL games in the past 13 years - his 250th first- grade appearance a few seasons ago. El Masri said yesterday: "Mum gets a bit protective so she feels more comfortable at home where she can take outall her emotions.
"It's not like she doesn't care or isn't interested - she watches all the games on the TV.
"Me, my brothers and sisters are pushing her to come on Sunday but we'll have to do our very best to convince her.''
Arwa is also working behind the scenes to have the entire family in attendance, with the Bulldogs chipping in to provide a dedicated corporate box for immediate relatives. In addition, an entire bay has been reserved for El Masri's wider circle of 300 family, friends and colleagues.
"We had to really coax her to come that one time, because she gets very nervous,'' Arwa said.
"As a mother, I can understand her concerns ... I don't even know if I could bear to watch my son [Zayd] play.
"But this is such a big day for Haz and it would mean so much to have her there. Hopefully we can get her along.''
Predictions of a 40,000 crowd were last night appearing conservative, with Bulldogs CEO Todd Greenberg reporting stronger pre-game sales than the 31,000 roll-up the Bulldogs attracted to their grudge match against Parramatta last month.
"And we are confident of a much bigger walk-up crowd because the game is on a Sunday and all NRL members have been given free entry, as well as kids under 15,'' Greenberg added.
El Masri said there were no problems getting his father, Khaled, to Homebush, despite some league teething problemsa decade ago.
"At first dad wasn't very keen on me playing rugby league, but now he's a bigger fan than I am,'' El Masri said. "He doesn't just watch my games - he watches them all, every weekend, and tells me every detail.''
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...l-masris-big-day/story-e6frexnr-1225766901506
THESE are the family photos that show why Bulldogs star Hazem El Masri's reputation as a proud father counts for even more than his bulging scrapbook of footballing testimonies.
And they will form part of an emotional nine-minute tribute video to cap his farewell home game on Sunday.
Gallery special: See more heart-warming pics of Hazem and his family here
But there's still one special person El Masri and his wife Arwa - who personally compiled the video - are trying to coax along along to witness its screening live at ANZ Stadium.
That person is El Masri's mother, Amal. Having reluctantly allowed her son to switch from soccer to rugby league as a teenager, Amal has since struggled to watch El Masri's matches live - out of fear that her boy might suffer an injury.
She has attended just one of El Masri's 313 NRL games in the past 13 years - his 250th first- grade appearance a few seasons ago. El Masri said yesterday: "Mum gets a bit protective so she feels more comfortable at home where she can take outall her emotions.
"It's not like she doesn't care or isn't interested - she watches all the games on the TV.
"Me, my brothers and sisters are pushing her to come on Sunday but we'll have to do our very best to convince her.''
Arwa is also working behind the scenes to have the entire family in attendance, with the Bulldogs chipping in to provide a dedicated corporate box for immediate relatives. In addition, an entire bay has been reserved for El Masri's wider circle of 300 family, friends and colleagues.
"We had to really coax her to come that one time, because she gets very nervous,'' Arwa said.
"As a mother, I can understand her concerns ... I don't even know if I could bear to watch my son [Zayd] play.
"But this is such a big day for Haz and it would mean so much to have her there. Hopefully we can get her along.''
Predictions of a 40,000 crowd were last night appearing conservative, with Bulldogs CEO Todd Greenberg reporting stronger pre-game sales than the 31,000 roll-up the Bulldogs attracted to their grudge match against Parramatta last month.
"And we are confident of a much bigger walk-up crowd because the game is on a Sunday and all NRL members have been given free entry, as well as kids under 15,'' Greenberg added.
El Masri said there were no problems getting his father, Khaled, to Homebush, despite some league teething problemsa decade ago.
"At first dad wasn't very keen on me playing rugby league, but now he's a bigger fan than I am,'' El Masri said. "He doesn't just watch my games - he watches them all, every weekend, and tells me every detail.''
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...l-masris-big-day/story-e6frexnr-1225766901506
...:love: hazem
