‘Couldn’t get more cringe’: Wests Tigers roasted over Luke Brooks statement

Long-maligned half Luke Brooks finally broke his NRL finals duck on Sunday afternoon, but his former club has entered the chat.

The Wests Tigers have been roasted after releasing a statement congratulating former halfback Luke Brooks for winning his first finals match for Manly on the weekend.

Brooks featured in 11 NRL seasons for the Tigers without featuring in a finals match as the club hasn’t made the playoffs since 2011.

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While the old joke about the club used to be that they’d always finish ninth — something they have done six times in their history — in more recent season, the Tigers have been the NRL’s basket case, completing a hat-trick of wooden spoons in 2024.

Although the side did win two more games than both 2022 and 2023 and were involved in the “Spoon Bowl” with the Eels, the year was yet another unmitigated disaster for the team that is looking to be taken seriously as competitive force.

However, it appears the club has kicked yet another own goal with the statement on Brooks.

The 29-year-old Brooks played 205 games for the Tigers between 2013 and 2023, before finally departing for the Sea Eagles, which has instantly borne fruit as his 230th game was his first NRL final — the Sea Eagles’ 24-22 win over the Bulldogs.

It was a grand total of 4040 days between his debut and his first NRL finals match.

It was clearly a good feeling for Luke Brooks. Picture: NRL Photos

But after more than a decade of not being involved in finals, the Tigers felt Brooks’ match for a rival in a game they weren’t involved in was worth acknowledging in a statement on the club website.

“Wests Tigers wish to congratulate former halfback Luke Brooks on his achievements over the weekend for Manly Warringah Sea Eagles,” the statement began.

“Brooks, 29, made the move to the Sea Eagles at the end of the 2023 season, after playing 205 games across 11 seasons at Wests Tigers.

“Although he did not play finals footy in his time at the Tigers, Brooks certainly enjoyed his first taste of finals footy on Sunday, helping the Sea Eagles to a 24-22 victory over the Bulldogs.”

The statement also included a quote from CEO Shane Richardson, who congratulated the half.

“On behalf of everyone here at Wests Tigers, I want to congratulate Luke on achieving something that he has wanted for a long time,” said Richardson.

“Luke spent more than a decade as a Wests Tigers player, so he will always be a part of this family.

“He showed loyalty when many didn’t.”

Although there was nothing wrong with the statement and it appears to have come from a good place, it was a bizarre decision from the club’s media team after yet another failed season.

There was a lot of that over his first 205 NRL matches. Photo by Jenny Evans/Getty Images

And fans were quick to savage the post.

Nate from the This Week in League Podcast tweeted: “Presenting the Dally M Peter Frilingos Headline Moment of the Year for 2024 … … your winner is the @WestsTigers.”

One fan posted: “Just when you think the Wests Tigers couldn’t get more cringe they do this.”

Another commented: “The Tigers congratulating Luke Brooks is wild.”

A Tigers fan wrote: “As Wests Tigers biggest fan, I, too, would like to pass on my congratulations for his on field achievements last weekend for the Manly Sea Eagles.”

Another Tigers tragic said: “Take a bow, Wests Tigers! You complete and utter freak show of an organisation!”

Another fan added: “What is wrong with you!!!! @WestsTigers.”

Luke Brooks’ “loyalty” was famously rewarded with a BBQ. Photo: NRL Photos

It’s not the first bizarre moment the Tigers have had with Brooks after giving him a BBQ as a parting gift from the club.

Brooks has been roasted over the present since, with The Matty Johns Show’s Bryan Fletcher asking him about the BBQ with the star revealing as of July 14, he still hadn’t used it.

“Are you worried because you got it from the Tigers, it won’t work?” Fletcher joked.

“No comment,” Brooks replied.

Brooks has spoken about how his time at the Tigers had prepared him for playing in the finals.

He said the long wait to play finals meant he’d been able to keep his nerves in check.

“I think it’s held me in good stead for these big games,” Brooks told the Sea Eagles’ website.

“I wasn’t too nervous. It definitely helped me. I felt like it was just another game, to be honest, just with a bigger crowd.

“It was a crazy game and an awesome experience, with 50,000 fans. It was so loud, especially the Dogs fans … but the Manly fans were behind those sticks where we scored, so it was pretty awesome.”

Originally published as ‘Couldn’t get more cringe’: Wests Tigers roasted over Luke Brooks statement