The Fibros and the Silvertails

[GCBRONCO]

This was on a few days ago and I missed it but luckily they are bringing out a dvd of it if anyone here is interested.

http://www.fibrosandsilvertails.com.au/

The Fibros and the Silvertails is the story of the feud between two football teams that turned into a war about class and alleged corruption.

The teams are Wests and Manly. The year is 1978.

Manly are the new face of rugby league and have won the premiership three times in the last decade. Wests have to look back to 1952.

Then a new coach takes over at Wests. Roy Masters coins the phrase  the fibros and the silvertails  to describe the struggle of the western suburbs against the elite of the city’s north and east.

The season will become a war of words off the field and a battle on the field. The game will be overshadowed by violence and refereeing controversy.

At the start, Wests and Manly are just two teams among many. By the end, they will be bitter rivals. Fibro and silvertail will be part of our language. And everyone will have two teams  their own team and the team playing Manly.

This is the story of one of sport’s classic feuds.

FEATURING Interviews with Roy Masters, Tom Raudonikis, Les Boyd, Graham Eadie, Max Krilich, Greg Hartley and many others. Plus rare footage of classic Wests v Manly battles.

DVD SPECIAL FEATURES Over three hours of Special Features with classic Wests, Manly and Cronulla game footage from 1978:

Wests v Manly, Lidcombe Oval  ABC News Report about on-field violence

Wests v Manly Final  ABC Broadcast (Please Note! This is a copy of the only known recording of this classic game. The sound quality is very poor, but the action is very good.)

Manly v Cronulla Grand Final  ABC Broadcast

Manly v Cronulla GrandFinal Replay  ABC Broadcast

 

[dukey]

I saw some of this and it was a good show.
The feud itself is a very interesting one with a lot of spite.

 

[mick]

I tuned in on ABC, and pretty keen to get the DVD too (hopefully in my Christmas stocking!). Great doco, really interesting storyline & I can't wait to see the extras on the DVD!

 

[Raw Boned Youngster]

The reality was that Manly had a huge influence over the administration and general sway over the game in those days. They had the habit of poaching from the strugglers. The average punter disliked the pattern that was emerging.
The smugness.
The superiority complex.
Masters was a great motivator who tapped into the loyalty / battler / us V them mentality that is worth a couple of million in the cap.

Different days, different plays.
Slower, more dangerous but incredibly intense.
Lots of crafty and magnificent footballers.
What made the game really interesting was that some players were superb attackers but terrible defenders and vice versa. It created interest and talking points and the game wasn't over coached.

Gibson was emerging as was the greatest football brain of all time - The Wok Ryan.

Dallas Donnelly, the fat and extremely tough and influential West Front rower, bit the head off a gold fish and people laughed.
Today?

Roy Masters is still a valid read today by the way.

 

[dukey]

Roy Masters is still a valid read today by the way.

That 'Bad Boys' book he wrote is a great read for fans of any code.

 

[mick]

Masters is easily, IMO, the best RL journalist in this country. Daylight between him and anyone else.

 

[Coxy]

Agreed Mick. And that's a really sad indictment on the quality of RL journalism. He is terribly terribly biased.

 

[Steve]

Didn't he ask for redundancy from the SMH?