Breaking news: HBG takeover

[hammertime]

Even if the magpies were to return, the same problems would still be there. Even more so if they haven't got any guardrails in terms of sensibility in running a business.

The NRL isn't going to grant that when HBG have shown time and time again that they couldn't manage their way out of a paper bag.

 

[jirskyr]

The Richo stuff is hearsay.

I'd rather do without the hearsay though.

Maybe Richo doesn't leave, but I prefer the decisions where his ongoing participation is not under question and the rug is not pulled out from under his feet.

It's all well and good for HBG to say they still support Benji and Richo, but the people making the majority decisions on the WT Board are gone now.

This is like the big company buying out the little company and promising nothing will change, but it always does, it's human nature. HBG will start slowly changing the plans, undoing decisions, changing the CEO directives. If they have no intention of changing anything they wouldn't have sacked the independents, so clearly they have ambitions to make changes.

 

[UnderTheBus]

It's not that people really think Wests Ashfield are going to cut out Balmain and return the Magpies to the NRL.

It's that these WA owner keep undermining forward progress with their own internal nonsense, some of which includes objections to jerseys or public comments about the return of the Magpies.

Dennis Burgess said in public that he hoped the Magpies would return, it has been widely reported. So even if that's not really going to happen, you should not have the Chairman of HBG (and representative on the Wests Tigers Board) saying such things. It just continues to open up opportunities to drive a wedge in.

Apart from all that, I am personally sick of the HBG dysfunction. The WT Independent Board members have gone about their business professionally and quietly. No ructions, no public spats, no leaked information... and generally speaking people could see the forward progress - the new stadium strategy, the profits and increase in corporate/sponsorship etc.

Compared to HBG - Simon Cook steps down, HBG have a civil war and 3 of the OG Wests Ashfield people are hooked and banned for a decade, HBG resist then finally follow the independent review, Julie Romero gets knifed, and then the independent board gets sacked.

THIS ALL HAPPENED INSIDE 12 MONTHS.

Sick of the HBG bullshit. Sick of the club failures being tied to the lack of stability or capability of the owners. They run a successful Leagues Club based on pokie revenues - that is not translating into on-field success. Since Wests Ashfield took over Tigers have never made the finals and claimed 3 wooden spoons. The club was not a great success story prior to that, but the worst years have undoubtedly been the Wests Ashfield ownership years.

I don't want to be associated with Wests Ashfield any more; I love my Wests Magpies brothers and sisters and they are in the same pickle as we all are - our club is owned by morons who can't help but get in the way, barge into the kitchen, poke the baking cake, taste-test the stock and just touch everything because 30 years ago they put up money for a chook raffle. FO HBG, nobody cares about you or your egos or your feelings or your photo on the website. FO back to your pokie den and leave the football club to people who care more about Wests Tigers than themselves.

"Compared to HBG - Simon Cook steps down, HBG have a civil war and 3 of the OG Wests Ashfield people are hooked and banned for a decade, HBG resist then finally follow the independent review, Julie Romero gets knifed, and then the independent board gets sacked."

Very well said. The only thing that can save Wests Tigers is liquor and gaming. What is the point of liquor and gaming if they haven't already stepped in to take control of the corporate governance of HBG after the above has happened in the last 12 months alone?

 

[TT 01]

This is so dumb - lack of communication back to the HBG board - you have people on both boards so if anyone should be removed and should be them who have obviously failed to communicate back.
I know they will spin it how they want but if players are looking to sign with us they see this sort of stuff and say no thanks - still a basket case

 

[hammertime]

I overheard a conversation recently where a suggestion was made that could possibly, please both sides of the JV.
Instead of playing in the traditional tiger colours, we could adopt the Siberian Tiger colours of white and black and black and white as our home and away jerseys
The club is still called the Tigers, and we still have the Tiger claw stripes.
How does everyone feel about that as a compromise.

I honestly don't think most people care about the colour of the jersey and if this is a real sticking point, then it truly shows how much of a sh1tshow we are.

 

[Don Kershane]

Wests Tigers sacking chaos as O'Farrell hits out​

By SEN

Off-field chaos at the West Tigers - where four directors were sacked overnight - has spilled into SEN 1170’s Breakfast show which was interrupted by a statement from Barry O’Farrell.
The former NSW premier was one of the four names to be dumped from the club’s board by majority owners the Holman Barnes Group on Monday evening amid a series of disagreements which includes the colour of the club’s jersey for 2026.

The sacked quartet - which includes O’Farrell, Annabelle Williams, Charlie Viola and Michelle McDowell - were said to be blindsided by the move having only been elected to the board in January of this year.
Michael Carayannis, who broke the story on Monday night, was co-hosting SEN Breakfast on 1170 when O’Farrell issued a statement direct to him.
“Since January 2025, the board has been unified and effective in improving the Wests Tigers’ governance, strategy and financial performance,” it read.
“We have at all times complied with our fiduciary duties in our roles as directors.
“We reject any suggestion of a lack of communication with Holman Barnes Group.
“Holman Barnes Group is represented on the board of the Wests Tigers and its representative has been present at all Wests Tigers board meetings and provided with all board information.
“No concerns have been raised by the representative of Holman Barnes Group at any Wests Tigers board meeting in relation to governance, communication or consultation.
“We are yet to be informed of the details or particulars of Holman Barnes Group’s concerns.”

Amid the board chaos, attention and concern now turns to the role of chief executive Shane Richardson and how safe he is.
“I'd be shocked if Shane Richardson was CEO at the start of next season,” Carayannis said on Tuesday morning.
"I thought the Tigers were tracking positively and the board members were doing a good job for the past 11 months. That's more that can be said for the Holman Barnes Group.”
The Tigers finished 13th in 2025 with a 9-15 win-loss record.

Burgess- being the dumbest person in the room obviously has chip on his shoulder and delights in his role as HBG dibber dobber.

 

[jirskyr]

"Compared to HBG - Simon Cook steps down, HBG have a civil war and 3 of the OG Wests Ashfield people are hooked and banned for a decade, HBG resist then finally follow the independent review, Julie Romero gets knifed, and then the independent board gets sacked."

Very well said. The only thing that can save Wests Tigers is liquor and gaming. What is the point of liquor and gaming if they haven't already stepped in to take control of the corporate governance of HBG after the above has happened in the last 12 months alone?

Honestly I think it's really an NRL thing now not a L&G. L&G can only intervene on how HBG run their own clubs, not the NRL licence.

Time for NRL to come in and say "if you don't have the independents the licence goes up for sale". NRL mandated independents when they bailed out Balmain a decade ago.

NRL have allowed HBG to take majority ownership of WT because they are well funded, but at some point they will need to intervene for the benefit of the club/licence. It doesn't do the NRL any good to have the Tigers bombing around near the bottom every year, the NRL needs turnover and competition so the lesser teams rise up and have their turn.

I can only wonder what the NRL thinks if the Tigers actually became good for a decade, what kind of windfall that would be for the NRL in terms of crowds, merch, sponsorship money etc... a 20-year disaffected and disappointed fan base coming back into the game in huge motivated numbers.

You only have to look at the Bulldogs - 5 or 6 years of bleak, then they get a sniff of the finals again and start posting 50K local derbies.

 

[jrtiger]

If he leaves he will give them a public spray on the way out the door,,

I get the feeling he'll go above HBG. it's certainly time to do so.

 

[jirskyr]

This is so dumb - lack of communication back to the HBG board - you have people on both boards so if anyone should be removed and should be them who have obviously failed to communicate back.
I know they will spin it how they want but if players are looking to sign with us they see this sort of stuff and say no thanks - still a basket case

Yeah sack Burgess. Your guy is obviously not doing his job.

How can there possibly be a lack of communication when you have representatives on the Board, I don't get how anyone could say something so dumb.

It would be like me complaining about the lack of information from my kids' school, when my wife attends every P&F and information night.

 

[BlackWhiteGold]

Even if the magpies were to return, the same problems would still be there. Even more so if they haven't got any guardrails in terms of sensibility in running a business.

The NRL isn't going to grant that when HBG have shown time and time again that they couldn't manage their way out of a paper bag.

HBG has lost all trust now amongst 99.9% of the fan base now. Whatever decision they make and direction they go, who is to say they won't change direction in 6 months time. Fans will have no trust.

Absolute sh*tshow of the highest order!

Like most on here, I have invested a lifetime of emotion & support into this club. To have all that ripped up with no future will be like a death in the family!

And if I see these pricks in person, I hate to think.

 

[coivtny]

NRL has poured 26 years and 10s of millions of dollars into marketing Tigers, no way they would toss all that out to bring back a less marketable bird.
Nobody outside Australia knows what a magpie is. Tiger is the worlds 3rd most used sports logo across many sports.
NRL will laugh this off with a big NO.

Mate, I know it wasn’t the thrust of your argument but magpies are great birds and have wide distribution outside Australia. For example they are prevalent in the UK and quite a few English soccer teams have magpies as their emblem including Newcastle in the EPl and Notts County a couple of divisions down.
But, I agree 100% with the main thrust of your argument.

 

[UnderTheBus]

Honestly I think it's really an NRL thing now not a L&G. L&G can only intervene on how HBG run their own clubs, not the NRL licence.

Time for NRL to come in and say "if you don't have the independents the licence goes up for sale". NRL mandated independents when they bailed out Balmain a decade ago.

NRL have allowed HBG to take majority ownership of WT because they are well funded, but at some point they will need to intervene for the benefit of the club/licence. It doesn't do the NRL any good to have the Tigers bombing around near the bottom every year, the NRL needs turnover and competition so the lesser teams rise up and have their turn.

I can only wonder what the NRL thinks if the Tigers actually became good for a decade, what kind of windfall that would be for the NRL in terms of crowds, merch, sponsorship money etc... a 20-year disaffected and disappointed fan base coming back into the game in huge motivated numbers.

You only have to look at the Bulldogs - 5 or 6 years of bleak, then they get a sniff of the finals again and start posting 50K local derbies.

Agree.

However, L&G intervention at HBG level would no doubt change the constitution and get rid of the debenture system once and for all, taking the power away from these individuals.

 

[BlackWhiteGold]

I get the feeling he'll go above HBG. it's certainly time to do so.

I hate to say it but I'd be all for News Corp coming in to buy out our club, a forced buy-out directed by the NRL. They'd have a club ownership presence in Sydney and we all know News Corp clubs get all the favours!

 

[Telltails]

What the morons don't realise is following this club is not fun or rewarding and yet they still persist in testing our allegiance.
You wonder why managers steer their players away from us - this

 

[coivtny]

I overheard a conversation recently where a suggestion was made that could possibly, please both sides of the JV.
Instead of playing in the traditional tiger colours, we could adopt the Siberian Tiger colours of white and black and black and white as our home and away jerseys
The club is still called the Tigers, and we still have the Tiger claw stripes.
How does everyone feel about that as a compromise.

Mate, I really don’t think colour is the major issue. I could be wrong of course but the three colours of yellow, black and white suit me perfectly.

 

[coivtny]

It's not that people really think Wests Ashfield are going to cut out Balmain and return the Magpies to the NRL.

It's that these WA owner keep undermining forward progress with their own internal nonsense, some of which includes objections to jerseys or public comments about the return of the Magpies.

Dennis Burgess said in public that he hoped the Magpies would return, it has been widely reported. So even if that's not really going to happen, you should not have the Chairman of HBG (and representative on the Wests Tigers Board) saying such things. It just continues to open up opportunities to drive a wedge in.

Apart from all that, I am personally sick of the HBG dysfunction. The WT Independent Board members have gone about their business professionally and quietly. No ructions, no public spats, no leaked information... and generally speaking people could see the forward progress - the new stadium strategy, the profits and increase in corporate/sponsorship etc.

Compared to HBG - Simon Cook steps down, HBG have a civil war and 3 of the OG Wests Ashfield people are hooked and banned for a decade, HBG resist then finally follow the independent review, Julie Romero gets knifed, and then the independent board gets sacked.

THIS ALL HAPPENED INSIDE 12 MONTHS.

Sick of the HBG bullshit. Sick of the club failures being tied to the lack of stability or capability of the owners. They run a successful Leagues Club based on pokie revenues - that is not translating into on-field success. Since Wests Ashfield took over Tigers have never made the finals and claimed 3 wooden spoons. The club was not a great success story prior to that, but the worst years have undoubtedly been the Wests Ashfield ownership years.

I don't want to be associated with Wests Ashfield any more; I love my Wests Magpies brothers and sisters and they are in the same pickle as we all are - our club is owned by morons who can't help but get in the way, barge into the kitchen, poke the baking cake, taste-test the stock and just touch everything because 30 years ago they put up money for a chook raffle. FO HBG, nobody cares about you or your egos or your feelings or your photo on the website. FO back to your pokie den and leave the football club to people who care more about Wests Tigers than themselves.

Spot on brother.

 

[GNR4LIFE]

Mate, I know it wasn’t the thrust of your argument but magpies are great birds and have wide distribution outside Australia. For example they are prevalent in the UK and quite a few English soccer teams have magpies as their emblem including Newcastle in the EPl and Notts County a couple of divisions down.
But, I agree 100% with the main thrust of your argument.

The biggest football club in the country is Colllingwood for Gods sake.

 

[Kelce68]

I overheard a conversation recently where a suggestion was made that could possibly, please both sides of the JV.
Instead of playing in the traditional tiger colours, we could adopt the Siberian Tiger colours of white and black and black and white as our home and away jerseys
The club is still called the Tigers, and we still have the Tiger claw stripes.
How does everyone feel about that as a compromise.

Is this parody?

The Western Suburbs Magpies loyalists are on a hiding to nothing.

It will never, ever return to the Magpies or deviate from the current setup.

They are putting themselves and their own interests before the betterment of the club.

They are a virus.

You can add McAllister and Stamo and all the other low-IQ foot soldiers into that mix as well.

 

[Alex Seyfarth's #1 Fan]

Even if the magpies were to return, the same problems would still be there. Even more so if they haven't got any guardrails in terms of sensibility in running a business.

The NRL isn't going to grant that when HBG have shown time and time again that they couldn't manage their way out of a paper bag.

Do these guys have no foresight? The Magpies returning would be a complete disaster. These guys have been there every step of the way for our wooden spoons and failures, yet they think they can run an NRL team? And not just any NRL team, they would be picking up the pieces of an already failing club. To top it off, I could see them being the most hated team in the NRL. People actually have a soft spot for WT. There would be no love for a team created by a hostile takeover.

What players would they recruit? We have a hard enough time getting players here as it is. EVERYONE in the league talks smack about our club, and how you shouldn't go there as it will ruin your career. Magpies would be that on steroids.

 

[Kelce68]

The biggest football club in the country is Colllingwood for Gods sake.

'Biggest' ?