THE RL1908 BLOG

News, Reviews & Opinion - Sean Fagan - RL1908.com

The Fibros and the Silvertails is Paul Oliver's account of the feud between two rugby league football teams that turned into a war about class and corruption. The teams are Sydney's Wests and Manly. The year is 1978.

The publishing world (both in the print form and film form) has traditionally spurned investing in rugby league books, films and documentaries. Their perception is that fans of sports such as cricket, rugby union and Australian football are avid devourers of intellectual study of their games, but rugby league fans are purportedly not interested.

The interest generated by The Fibros and the Silvertails at the Sydney Film Festival in June 2007 belies the theory that rugby league is a cultural wasteland when it comes to finding subjects to study, and for the public to find interesting.

Along with the about to be released The Final Winter and last year's Footy Legends, the success and enthusiasm for The Fibros and the Silvertails is hopefully a portend that rugby league will no longer be seen as a sport devoid of interest and worthwhile study.