CLANCY OVERELL | Editor | CONTACT
A recent report by the NRL has found that everyone is backing the Raiders this year, as the underdog saviours for the game of rugby league.
After the fairytale premierships for the Bunnies (2014), Cowboys (2015) and Cronulla (2016) earlier this decade – the game has once again fallen stagnant after the sombrero megaclubs won the comp the last two years.
However, with both the Melbourne Storm and the Sydney Roosters now forced to play each other for a grand final position, and the Canberra Raiders taking a week off before playing the winner of the Rabbitohs/Manly semi – it seems the mighty Canberra Milk are carrying a lot of stateless rugby league fans on their shoulders.
The report has found with each week of football, the Milk fanbase grows steadily, as it inherits all the jaded supporters of the other clubs that are shafted from the finals.
Our reporters took to the ghostly streets of now mad-monday oriented rugby league heartlands to see where the fans are now channeling their anti-Roosters and anti-Storm disdain.
“I’m on the fucken Milk this year” says Townsville local, Clyde Katter (56)
“Up the fucken Milk!”
Kerryanne a floral decorate from Newcastle shared similar sentiments.
“Those English boys are gorgeous”
“Up the fucken Peaky Raiders”
With what almost looks like an assured grand final spot, and a growing likelihood of Parramatta single-handedly knocking off the Chooks and the Storm – an underdog grand final appears to be just what the game needs to save it after the off-season from hell.
“It’s just a shame we can’t keep these blokes playing all year” said NRL CEO Todd Greenberg.
“I worry about the upcoming wave of free-time”
