Here’s something a little bing-bong-la-la. I’m about to have a moan about people moaning at me for having a moan. At least hear me out!
To the clickbait Warriors crowd out there, because I hesitate to call most of the Instagram crowd “fans”, don’t tell me how to support my team.
The DSPN podcast has been copping it lately from Warriors fans for seemingly being too harsh when analysing their performances in the NRL.
Let’s get something straight – I’ve followed the Warriors since Balmain merged with Western Suburbs, before most of the social media generation could walk, let alone pretend to support a rugby league club.
There’s a new breed of "supporter" out there, and I’m being generous calling them that – the clickbait crew, the Insta crowd. The ones who pile in with outrage if you dare offer a critical word about the team.
Here’s a wake-up call – supporting your team doesn’t mean blindly clapping every time they turn out a shocker. You don’t get points for pretending bad performances are actually good ones.
When the Warriors play well, I praise them to the hilt. Go back and listen. I’ve been full-throated in backing this team when they perform. But when they don’t – when they put in a performance like they did against the Raiders in Las Vegas – you better believe I’m calling that out.
Not because I hate them, because I love them. Criticism isn’t betrayal, it’s part of fandom.
There seems to be this warped idea – especially online – that offering criticism makes you a “fake fan.” That if you don’t say “Up the Wahs” 24/7, you’re somehow disloyal.
Here’s my view – if you’ve followed this team through decades of ups and downs, rebuilds and false dawns, you’ve earned the right to say when something stinks.
And when it does stink, the players and club need to hear that. They’re not immune. This isn’t the Vatican. The Warriors are not a sacred cow.
Sport isn’t kumbaya. It’s not group hugs and everyone holding hands. It’s conflict, drama, debate, and passion. And part of the reason you tune in – to my podcast, to the radio, to the telly – is because you WANT different views. If we all said the same thing, what’s the point?
Do you want a cuddly echo chamber where nothing bad is ever said? That’s what Love Island recaps are for.
But if you’re someone who’s sat through oh so many difficult years, living on Hope Street just off of Disappointment Drive, then you know – real fandom is built on tough love.
You support through thick and thin, yes. But you don’t pretend thin is actually thick.
You don’t watch a dismal 66 per cent completion rate and say “ah well, at least they looked good in the warm-ups.” You call it what it is, because you care.
And another thing – if you don’t agree, that’s totally fine. That’s the joy of opinion. But you don’t get to call mine invalid just because it makes you uncomfortable.
You want to live in a world where no one’s allowed to say anything unless it’s positive? You’re not talking about sport. You’re talking about a marketing meeting.
