Wests Tigers
From Freepedia
| Full name | Wests Tigers Rugby League Club |
| Emblem | Tiger |
| Colours | Black, white and gold |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Sport | Rugby League |
| League | National Rugby League |
| Ground | Campbelltown Stadium / Leichhardt Oval / Telstra Stadium |
| Capacity | 21,000 / 23,000 / 83,500 |
| CEO | Steve Noyce |
| Captain | Scott Prince |
| Coach | Tim Sheens |
| 2005 | 4th of 15 |
| Premierships | 1 - 2005 |
| Runners-Up | Nil |
| Minor Premierships | Nil |
| Wooden Spoons | Nil |
| Biggest win | 54 - 2 vs. Bulldogs, August 19, 2005 |
| Worst defeat | 0 - 64 vs. Melbourne, July 5, 2001 |
The Wests Tigers are a team in the National Rugby League (NRL), the premier rugby league football competition in Australia.
Contents |
Overview
In 2000 the Wests Tigers were admitted to the National Rugby League. The team is rare in the NRL because it is one of only two joint venture franchises that still exist in the current competition. The joint venture consists of two Sydney-based teams, the Western Suburbs Magpies and the Balmain Tigers, both of whom were foundation members of the New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) competition, predecessor of the Australian Rugby League (ARL) and the current NRL competition.
As a consequence of the joint venture, the Wests Tigers base their headquarters in Concord, New South Wales and their supporting Leagues Clubs are located in Balmain, Ashfield, (inner-city suburbs of Sydney) and Campbelltown. The joint venture has also chosen to have two home grounds to accommodate the two main supporter bases. These grounds are Campbelltown Sports Stadium, about 50 km south-west of Sydney and Leichhardt Oval, about 6 km west of Sydney, the former home grounds of the Western Suburbs Magpies and the Balmain Tigers respectively. In the 2005 season the Wests Tigers played six home games at Telstra Stadium (formerly Stadium Australia) as well as a home game at Jade Stadium in Christchurch, New Zealand.
The club's official fanatical supporters group is the Wests Tigers Fanatics
Major milestones
- Major Premiership Titles: 2005
- Premiership Runners-up: Nil
- Minor Premiership Titles: Nil
- Other Rugby League Titles: World Club Sevens 2004 Champions
Club history
The Wests Tigers were formed as a joint venture club between two of the NSWRL's foundation members; the Western Suburbs Magpies and the Balmain Tigers in mid-1999 in preparation for the 14 team NRL premiership of 2000.
Both clubs appeared to be headed for mergers with other more financially secure partners — Balmain with Parramatta, and the Magpies with Canterbury — but at the last moment they both decided they had more in common with each other, resulting in the birth of the Wests Tigers.
The club's name and logo are an obvious combination of the two partners. Similarly, the uniform colours are a combination of the black and white of the Western Suburbs Magpies uniform and the black and gold from the Balmain Tigers uniform. In an effort to ensure the Magpies logo was not lost, it was placed permanently on the jersey sleeve.
2005 season
2005 was the Wests Tigers best season yet, as they not only made it to the finals for the first time, but also reached the top four in the round robin part of the competition, setting crowd attendance records at three different grounds: Campbelltown Stadium (20,527), Telstra Stadium (29,542) and Leichhardt Oval (22,877).
The club was the favourite to win the premiership after they beat the St. George-Illawarra Dragons to book a spot against the North Queensland Cowboys, whom they then defeated 30-16 in the Grand Final as many predicted. Captain Scott Prince was then awarded the the Clive Churchill medal for 2005. Prince joins football great Peter Sterling who was the original recipient of the medal. Ben Galea, John Skandalis, Benji Marshall among others starred for the Tigers.
During the Grand Final one of the greatest ever Grand Final tries was scored, by winger Pat Richards. The try was started by five-eight Benji Marshall, who received the ball from Brett Hodgson 98 metres from the opposition tryline. He beat Cowboys five-eight Johnathan Thurston and Matt Sing. He then ran 60 metres, only to be caught by Cowboys fullback Matt Bowen. He made a flick pass to Pat Richards, who then fended off Rod Jensen to score.
Their premiership victory means that they join an exclusive group of clubs that won premierships in their first finals appearance, which has not been achieved in almost 100 years. This group also includes Souths in 1908 and Newtown in 1910.
The Wests Tigers are currently coached by Tim Sheens.
Notable players
- Scott Prince (c)
- Brett Hodgson
- Pat Richards
- Benji Marshall
- John Skandalis
- Daniel Fitzhenry
- Paul Whatuira
- Robbie Farah
- Mark O'Neill
- Dene Halatau
- Ben Galea
External link
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