Rugby League: Red V...where art thou?

Played Hard, Done Good! is unashamedly Red and White territory.

To that end, though this post is Dragons based I think every league fan can apply it to their team.

Watching the Dragons get off to a fantastic start this season, something came to mind. I'd like to ask a question that's a sub-question to the issue and discuss my view on it:

Where has the Red V been this season at home??

Saints have had three home games, all played at WIN. They've worn the Red V in only one of these matches and never the Steelers jersey. To me this is more outrageous than Phil Gould, Danny Wiedler and the obstruction rule put together.

Why can't Saints don the Red V at home or at least the Steelers jersey as an alternate strip? They play on Steelers turf, it makes sense if they don't use the Red V to use the Steelers strip. Right?

I'm sorry but something depicting Liverpool FC's 1993 away goalie's jersey is just not the answer.

I was expecting Darius Boyd to have "James 1" on his back last Friday night, a subtle nod to infamous Liverpool goalkeeper/MerMan David James.

Brisbane don't have a colour clash with the traditional Illawarra or St George jerseys. No team does. To make it more ridiculous Brisbane didn't use their normal jersey either.

Take a trip to rebelsport.com.au and see if you can buy the away jersey of any team. You may be disappointed. Even Rebel know the alternate strips hold no water with fans. Crikey....they are still selling Brisbane's home jersey from 2009 for God's sake!

So what gives NRL and clubs? Well the buck stops with money hungry "Augustus" Gallop.

Call me a simpleton, but I think its as easy as follows:

This with current emblems and sponsors in away games....

And this for Jubilee Oval and WIN Stadium....

And this rubbish never again...

Photo: Andy Zakeli ">

David Barnhill and Graeme "changa" Langlands.

Two Saints legends who permanently lost their voice and wore white boots respectively, set trends for modern day players like Darren Lockyer and Jarryd Hayne while wearing the Red V. All the other former players and Immortals who have worn it must be livid as well.

And who knows what Rod "Tree Trunks" Wishart, a man who has worn both jerseys, and Illawarra's answer to Mark "shoulder pads" McGaw, Brett Rodwell thinks of it.

We dare not ask these men from fear of having our faces ripped off.

Saints today wear Steelers shorts and socks every game, and the Red V part-time as part of the 1999 merger. What a legacy for each club's proud history eh?

Another example.

The Balmain Tigers and the Western Suburbs Magpies. We see the Tig's black V occasionally, but what about the white V of Wests? As a result Tommy Roudonikis now rasps "cattle dog!" every time he walks into the Tigers' Leagues Club. David "Cement" Gillespie is banned altogether since he didn't wait for the front doors to open at all, he walked through them instead.

I won't start on the poor North Sydney and scum-on-earth Manly debacle. Only to say I hope David Fairleigh gets his way and the Bears kick Manly's broken arse in Gosford some day. Greg "Flo" Florimo for Bears coach please.

Some say the jerseys are the result of a clubs "financial contribution" (read: power and influence) in the merges. If the code has a "proud and rich history" as Phil Gould is all too ready to boast, can't self interest be put aside to display the history of each club in the merge? This would best be shown by proudly playing in traditional colours home and away.

The NRL and clubs say "we have no pride in our history" when clubs don't keep their normal jersey for all but the games where colours clash. To the extent "Heritage Round" just takes the p-ss in my view.

Why not just play in original kit each week?!?

Wazza From Petersham.