Mr HAYES (12:25 PM) —The night of 2 October 2005 will be a night that lives long in the memory of many people in south-west Sydney. It was a night that saw people from all walks of life gathered around television screens in pubs, clubs and family homes, all in one united hope—the hope that the mighty Wests Tigers would take out the NRL grand final. I am happy to report that they did, and in spectacular style. The streets of Campbelltown in particular, where I live, were abuzz for a week, with perfect strangers coming together in shops and on streets, contemplating the prospects of the Wests Tigers at the grand final. Cars were decorated with balloons and streamers; shop windows were adorned with posters; and the air was filled with a nervous expectation.

It has been a long time since the western suburbs has won a premiership—1952, in fact—and it was back in 1969 when Balmain won a premiership. But this was the first occasion that the new five-year-old merged joint venture, the Wests Tigers, had made it to a grand final. Needless to say, in the days leading up to the grand final, supporters in the south-west of Sydney were already walking tall, looking forward to a great game and hopefully a great victory. That is exactly what we got: a great game, a tremendous victory and fabulous celebrations of the win. I do not know if the players have come back to earth as yet, but I do know that there is still a spring in the step of Tigers fans in the streets of Ingleburn, Campbelltown and Liverpool. It is amazing what a win like this can do for a local community like the one I represent.

There are a number of people who must be congratulated for taking the team from rank outsiders earlier in the season to a premiership win. Naturally, Scotty Prince and the players had a great deal to do with it, both the high-profile players and the not-so-high-profile players who toiled away tirelessly throughout the year and have become heroes in the community and examples to many aspiring young players who strap on their football boots every weekend.

Of course, a team is only as good as its support staff and Wests has been blessed with a fine coaching staff, led by Tim Sheens, himself no stranger to grand final success. To be honest, when I stood on the hill at Campbelltown Stadium with the Leader of the Opposition during my election campaign, watching Wests Tigers lose to the Canberra Raiders in a trial match, I did not think that I would see Wests Tigers making it to a semi-final let alone taking out the grand final. Tim Sheens and his coaching staff, strongly supported and encouraged by club officials, particularly the CEO, Steve Noyce, can be rightly proud of the results that they have now attained.

While the Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore, has decided not to put on a street parade to recognise the victory of this fine Sydney based side, I am proud to report that the West Tigers will lead a street parade through Campbelltown early in November. In fact, on 5 November the Tigers will lead more than 80 floats down Queen Street in the Festival of the Fisher’s Ghost street parade. The Tigers may not be considered good enough by the Lord Mayor of Sydney to have their own street parade, but they will certainly be greeted by thousands of cheering fans who will line Queen Street and congratulate their team. I will be one of those fans, and I am proud to say that this year, my team, the Wests Tigers, took out the premiership.

Congratulations to the players, the support staff, the administration and of course the fans on a superb effort this season. Let us hope that this time next year I will be proudly hanging the 2006 grand final-winning Wests Tigers T-shirt in the window of my parliamentary office.