Young Fans Not Choosing the Tigers

[Siberian Kitten]

Following Wests Tigers provides an important life lesson - to not take such things too seriously

 

[matchball]

I'm embarrassed by the club too.
This social media path they have taken on YouTube lately is a worry.
Multicultural trivia lol.
How about training harder and winning?

 

[old_man_tiger]

I'd be less worried about kids not choosing Tigers and more worried about kids not choosing rugby league at all. My son is totally into soccer and watches youtube about overseas players, but far less into rugby league in general.

Kids always come and go as fans, my daughter today (9 years old) said she thought she should start supporting Dolphins because "I believe they are new and they need new fans".

To be fair her logic is more sound than most of ours regarding rational choice of rugby league club to support

 

[Dennisspicer1]

My three youngest Kids (&, 12 &13) had a Charity Jersey Day at school down Menai way in Syd.

All were adamant that they DIDNT want wear their Tigers gear.

In the car they were debating which team the should move across to as the Tigers always loose.

The point of this thread is to highlight that this is what years of Garbage results and no clear direction is delivering success in the foreseeable future.

Generational Support is deserting this club.

Really Concerned.

Nothing different to lots of kids, they go to school in the Sharkeys area, and want to support who most of there school buddies do.

 

[Winston Churchill]

I'm embarrassed by the club too.
This social media path they have taken on YouTube lately is a worry.
Multicultural trivia lol.
How about training harder and winning?

The IQ shown in that video tells us everything we have always known.

 

[mctiger]

My three youngest Kids (&, 12 &13) had a Charity Jersey Day at school down Menai way in Syd.

All were adamant that they DIDNT want wear their Tigers gear.

In the car they were debating which team the should move across to as the Tigers always loose.

The point of this thread is to highlight that this is what years of Garbage results and no clear direction is delivering success in the foreseeable future.

Generational Support is deserting this club.

Really Concerned.

When I was at school in the mid 80’s most went for Parra or Canterbury. Kids will go for winners. Our turn will come.

 

[upthetigers]

I live in Newy and have taken my son to the local games and to Leichhardt a couple of times. Poor bugger has never seen a Tigers win. After the last defeat his quote was "Rugby league has lost its magic". I blame the Roosters and the NRL. Why the Roosters? For cheating so well for so long that teams like the Bulldogs are following their example. While ever it's an uneven playing field, teams down the bottom will struggle. Tedesco should've been a Tiger for life.

Melbourne rorted the cap too.

 

[ElleryHanley]

Firstly...context...I realise there are a million things worse than supporting a bad footy team.

Having said that...my 12 yo son asked last week "why did you have to support the Tigers, Dad"...

I.e. he has grown up watching them with us and now loves the team. They have become "his" team and he watches every Tiger's game...

He watches every NRL game most weekends and sees how much people enjoy their footy.....and sees the contrast with us.

My wife actually said "you are only 12, you can pick your own team if you want" last weekend...but he said "Too late now" as he loves the Tigers.

He is 12 and has only known failure. He has to rock up to school every Monday and hear all the Tiger's jokes...we have become a laughing stock.

I am proud he is sticking solid. I just would like us to show some pride in the jersey, play some exciting footy, and start to at least climb the ladder.

The OP is right...a whole generation of kids have been largely lost and, what should be an enjoyable thing to follow is embarrassing most weeks.

 

[Winston Churchill]

People are dropping their marbles. I imagine being a child supporting the tigers anywhere between 1990 and 2004 went through the exact same thing. This entire club has only ever known failure since 1969 with the exception of 1985-1989, 2005, 2010-2011.

If you are from the Balmain side you've only ever known about 8 years of being a top team out of roughly 60 seasons. Other NRL fans don't even count 2005 as you'll always hear that was a fluke!! Tigers have always been an underdog team. Pure crap is built into the club's DNA, and I love em.

The saddest part about the tigers recent history is the side 2009-2012 were good enough to have won 2 premierships and could have been the current Panthers side of that era but they completely failed to capitalise on it with such a brilliant team, which today makes the finals drought feel so much worse.

 

[old_man_tiger]

Firstly...context...I realise there are a million things worse than supporting a bad footy team.

Having said that...my 12 yo son asked last week "why did you have to support the Tigers, Dad"...

I.e. he has grown up watching them with us and now loves the team. They have become "his" team and he watches every Tiger's game...

He watches every NRL game most weekends and sees how much people enjoy their footy.....and sees the contrast with us.

My wife actually said "you are only 12, you can pick your own team if you want" last weekend...but he said "Too late now" as he loves the Tigers.

He is 12 and has only known failure. He has to rock up to school every Monday and hear all the Tiger's jokes...we have become a laughing stock.

I am proud he is sticking solid. I just would like us to show some pride in the jersey, play some exciting footy, and start to at least climb the ladder.

The OP is right...a whole generation of kids have been largely lost and, what should be an enjoyable thing to follow is embarrassing most weeks.

My kids are a few years younger and I'm trying to talk less about footy/ Tigers. I was stuck, it's not too late to save the children.

Frankly I think both have no regard for the NRL at all, they've figured out there are better things to do with their (I.e. my) time and money

 

[aturkey]

Smart kids

Geniuses compared to me

 

[batboy]

This kids mum is a Dragons fan, I don’t know how old he is - maybe 8/9…
But he seems to get to most games, even interstate games…
They’re all over social media with their travels following the club.
He’s nuts for the Tigers (despite It not seeming to be a family thing) - I can’t imagine he remembers a prime Benji.

For every kid you can find that “doesn’t follow the Tigers” there’s one of these - that loudly and proudly does.

- this photo taken in Newcastle this week…

 

[Merlot]

Not sure why when the club has world beaters like Brooks at the joint for a decade, every kid should aspire to being terrible at your job and still being paid $1 mill plus for it.

from what ive seen of late , most kid's do

 

[Jedi_Tiger]

Not in NSW and QLD...

Whist the Tigers may be on the nose with kids, you have got to be kidding that 90% prefer AFL... they certainly arent at Swans or even more laughably Giants games...

AFL in syndey might get 40k crowds "the Chardonnay Set" but absolutely terrible TV audiences. As for tw Giants ... lol

 

[InBenjiWeTrust]

This kids mum is a Dragons fan, I don’t know how old he is - maybe 8/9…
But he seems to get to most games, even interstate games…
They’re all over social media with their travels following the club.
He’s nuts for the Tigers (despite It not seeming to be a family thing) - I can’t imagine he remembers a prime Benji.

For every kid you can find that “doesn’t follow the Tigers” there’s one of these - that loudly and proudly does.

- this photo taken in Newcastle this week…

Attaboy 👍 👏🐅💪

 

[earl]

Having said that...my 12 yo son asked last week "why did you have to support the Tigers, Dad"

My youngest is 12. My daughter is 21 and doesn't give a stuff about sport at all. My 19 yo son has basically no interest in league. The 19 yo is very different to me. No alcohol or marijuana or partying. Freaken weirdo. The only sport he is into is MMA.

My 12 yo will watch the Tigers with me if we are winning but we never win. So he just walks away.

 

[Flippedy]

Whenever I see a little kid wearing WT gear I feel sorry for them and want to give them a hug or something to console them.
I then look at their parents like I want to smack them in the mouth.

Yes it’s akin to abuse!

 

[Bus 2 Terrigal]

My three youngest Kids (&, 12 &13) had a Charity Jersey Day at school down Menai way in Syd.

All were adamant that they DIDNT want wear their Tigers gear.

In the car they were debating which team the should move across to as the Tigers always loose.

The point of this thread is to highlight that this is what years of Garbage results and no clear direction is delivering success in the foreseeable future.

Generational Support is deserting this club.

Really Concerned.

I’m a 50+ year old kid and this week I’ve been Reece Walshing about on the Coast in a Broncos shirt. #KidsAintSilly

 

[The Ladies Man]

Should be 'Old fans choosing the dolphins'

 

[OzLuke]

My boy is completely the opposite, he has drunk the kool aid (Jonestown Kool Aid I think) and is right into it this year. This in itself has given me joy because despite the fact our team are amazingly craptacular, these moments are ones we are going to remember together forever. Good or bad, it's us together.