THE red and white army is filthy. Riled at being accused of "lacking passion", St George Illawarra fans bombarded The Daily Telegraph and talkback radio yesterday, vowing to turn out in their tens of thousands for Saturday night's grand final qualifier against Wests Tigers.
Their strong reaction followed claims by former Tigers players that Saints fans don't travel and would struggle to match the hordes of Wests Tigers supporters who will cram ANZ Stadium.
The Dragons, one of the proudest clubs in the league after winning an unprecedented 11 straight premierships between 1956-66, are just two games away from ending a 31-year premiership drought.
Pouring further fuel on the fire, Balmain great Steve Roach said yesterday: "The Saints are hanging their hat on the old days."
The Macri family, staunch Saints fans, also laughed off talk Tigers would outnumber Dragons two to one. "It's a myth [that we won't travel]," said father Rob Macri. "Dragons fans will be there in numbers. It'll be revenge for 2005 against the Tigers."
Peter Trad (AKA Cooper-Man), from the Dragon Army, was furious his club's fans had been accused of not being prepared to travel. "Wests Tigers fans only rock up in September anyway," Trad said.To say they'll out-number us is absolute rubbish. We will definitely out-number them."
Another Dragon Army member, Stel Giak (AKA OurRedV), was equally frustrated.
"We'll be there. We travel from coast to coach like butter on toast," Giak said. "We have the biggest supporter group in the game. Wherever they play, we'll be."
Dragons fan Mitchell Tapa also contacted The Daily Telegraph to tell us: "Dragons fans go everywhere. The Tigers don't have an army."
A cheeky Roach was in the mood for stirring Saints fans yesterday.
"They are hanging their hat on the old days," he said. "We're a young, hip club. We're not boring. We have all the young spunks following us We're a new breed club. ANZ Stadium will be flush with black and gold."
