The Blue Wiggle admits 'fairytale' plan to buy Wests Tigers
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The famous Blue Wiggle, Anthony Field has revealed his ‘fairytale’ plan to buy the Wests Tigers and bring a Balmain side back to the NRL.
The 60-year-old is an avid fan of the side but believes the ‘world would be a better place if Balmain came back’ as a standalone club.
In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, the children’s entertainment performer revealed that if the chips fall in a certain way then he could certainly be in a place to purchase the Tigers.
He said: “All my money now is invested in the Wiggles, and it would be a fairytale, but one day the Wiggles may sell somewhere.
“If I had that sort of money, yeah, I’d do it, absolutely.
“If the Wiggles were sold one day for a ridiculous amount of money, I would definitely do it. I feel like I’m opening up a can of worms here but you can’t sweep tradition under the carpet.”
Field is one of the most recognisable faces in Australia and would join the likes of South Sydney’s Russel Crowe as a private owner.
Currently, the Tigers' licence is 90 per cent owned by the Wests Magpies and 10 per cent owned by the Balmain Tigers.
However, the Blue-donning performer would be looking to bring back a bit of tradition and pave the way for an additional NRL club.
He said: “I tell you what, I would do it in a very respectful way with Wests by trying to convince them that Western Australia would be good for the Wests Magpies — and Campbelltown — and the ‘Tiges’ would come back to Leichhardt.
“Rugby league is a tribal sport and the world would be a better place if Balmain came back.
“Look, I buy into Wests Tigers because that’s all we’ve got, but I’ll be honest with you, if they announced tomorrow that Wests had their own team and Balmain had their own team, I don’t think I’d be sad – I’d be really happy, so happy.
“In the meantime, every week I’m buying tickets in the Italian lottery. If you win, that’s $250m, and with that sort of money I would go to Wests Ashfield and respectfully ask them if they’d like to row their own boat again.
“I hope they would still welcome me at Wests Leagues Club if I go down this path. Balmain is up against it because Wests hold all the cards at the moment, and that’s fine.”
The Tele reports that the Wests Tigers could be worth around $20 million, meanwhile, The Wiggles are valued at at least $50 million.
Featured Image Credit: IOIO IMAGES / Alamy. NRL/Supplied.
Topics: NRL, Australia, Rugby League, Wests Tigers