Monday Buzz: Phil Rothfield reveals his weekend highlights and lowlights

Two former Tigers featuring in a calendar on sale for Christmas are causing a little confusion for fans ahead of the 2023 season. Buzz’s weekend highlights and lowlights.

Phil Rothfield reveals his weekend highlights and lowlights in Australia’s best sport gossip column, Monday Buzz.

HIGHLIGHT

No Tim Cahill, no Harry Kewell, no Mark Viduka, no Lucas Neill and no real superstars. Instead the Socceroos fielded a team of tough scrappers who gave their all and proudly produced one of our greatest World Cup soccer performances to beat Tunisia in Qatar.

HIGHLIGHT II

A television audience of 1,034,000 on SBS for the Socceroos. This does not include the anticipated huge numbers from those who streamed the game.

LOWLIGHT

The NRL Bunker comes under some heavy criticism at times, much of it warranted. Still we shouldn’t kid ourselves that all the dud technology calls only happen in rugby league. The first week of the soccer World Cup has had a stack of controversial calls and sent social media into meltdown around the globe.

SPOTTED

A calendar featuring former Wests Tigers players is on sale for fans in the lead-up to Christmas. It’s unfortunate that Jackson Hastings and Tyrone Peachey appear on the front cover. Hastings is now at the Newcastle Knights and Peachey at the Penrith Panthers. The calendar, which the Tigers say is not theirs, was obviously printed weeks ago.

Newcastle’s Jackson Hastings and Penrith’s Tyrone Peachey feature on Wests Tigers’ 2023 calendar.

SPOTTED

Anthony Griffin playing golf in the same group as Jayden Sullivan and Tyrell Sloan and a club sponsor at St George Illawarra’s corporate golf day at Beverley Park on Friday.

SPOTTED

The great Manly Sea Eagles fullback Brett ‘Snake’ Stewart having lunch with a group of mates at Bistro Rex in Potts Point over the weekend.

BIG BREKKY

Catch you on the Big Sports Breakfast with Dean Ritchie, Michael Clarke and Gerard Middleton to discuss all the big stories and issues in rugby league.

WC PUNTERS GO MAD

Interest in the soccer World Cup with sports betting agencies has been off the charts, even before the Socceroos win against Tunisia.

The TAB operators are saying they are holding what they’d normally take on a State of Origin game, rugby league’s biggest betting event, every day.

Despite the victory on Saturday night, the Socceroos are rated a $7 chance to win against Denmark.

At least their price has tightened to win the whole tournament – from $401 to $301.

It’s been a good tournament for the bookies with a number of big bets going down the drain.

One punter blew $160,000 at $1.13 on Argentina against Saudi Arabia.

Another had $84,000 at $1.48 on England to beat USA, which ended in a draw.

Socceroos fans rocking Federation Square in Melbourne. Picture: Ian Currie

“Our Traders say it’s like having a State of Origin every night,” says the TAB’s Andrew Georgiou.

“What we’ve noticed is this World Cup has attracted genuine football punters, not just your casual fan, who might throw an EPL match into a multi.

“There’s an educated football fan base now because so many Leagues are accessible on streaming devices, punters know more of the players than ever.”

“And unlike other sports where there can be a parochial element for a team like the Socceroos, this seems to be all business.”

Some smart punters have been winning. One had $112,000 at $1.33 on Portugal to beat Ghana. Another had $100,000 on Senegal to beat Qatar at $1.70.

JERSEY BOYS

Sales for the Socceroos jersey are going gangbusters in sports stores around the country as the nation gets behind our team of underdogs.

Rebel Sport has revealed their top-10 countries for sales – and the parochial Aussie fans have ensured the Socceroos are at number one ahead of England and Brazil.

Rebel general manager Gary Williams says the company has had a recent bump in sales around three World Cups – soccer, rugby league and the T20.

“Australians love their national sports teams whether it’s cricket, netball, rugby league or soccer,” he said,” There’s been a big jump in sales for Socceroos jerseys since the start of the soccer World Cup.

“Across our 155 rebel stores, we have already recorded a 50 per cent increase in Socceroos jersey sales.

“Matildas shirt sales could outstrip them all as we build up to the women’s Football World Cup on Australian and New Zealand soil next year.”

Interestingly the Nigerian team jersey from the last World Cup in Russia is still a top-10 item.

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