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The Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders revealed how they leaned on each other when one of their teammates broke a major rule during a group trip.
Tensions rose toward the end of America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders season 2 when six-year veteran Chandi Dayle violated a major team policy while the girls were traveling in the Bahamas.
Speaking exclusively to PEOPLE about the new season, dancers Jada McLean, Charly Barby, Armani Latimer and Kelly Villares say they were proud of how they handled the “unfortunate situation” with their teammate.
“There are things that go on in any workplace. Situations come up, and I think the biggest thing is how you handle it,” says McLean, a fifth-year veteran of the team. “I think we did our best as a team to handle it professionally while still being supportive of her.”
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On the show, Dayle tells viewers she broke the rule and disclosed the group’s hotel information to an unknown person because she needed someone to confide in during the group trip amid personal issues with her ex-boyfriend.
While she’s away from the team, Dayle sheds tears and says she “met someone” in the Bahamas who shared “similar things that have happened in our past.”
McLean tells PEOPLE despite the mistake, “We’re not going to turn our back on her.”
“We’re teammates and we’re sisters at the end of the day,” she continues. “As a team, I think we just kind of rallied together and kept to the job and did our best to keep things moving, because at the end of the day, we still had a job to get done and that was our goal.”
Barby, a rookie in the second season, chimes in, “Absolutely. Absolutely.”
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Although Dayle opens up about feeling lonely and unable to confide in her teammates, Latimer, whose storyline this season follows her brave journey with alopecia, says the team is a close unit with ample access to mental health resources.
“We see each other every single day pretty much. So there’s kind of not going to be a day where if someone comes in and they seem a little off, we’re not going to notice,” she shares.
Latimer continues, “And we’ll pull them aside and have a chat with them and say, ‘Hey, what’s going on today? Anything you need to talk about?’ So I think we’re pretty good at doing that.”
Season 2 of America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders is now streaming on Netflix.
