Rod and Gabi VS Tom Wright vs Mal Meninga

Brumbies’ Tom Wright Reveals his Beef with Mal Meninga and his love of Bluey

Before Tom Wright re-signed with the Brumbies there were whispers he might head back to the NRL.

Now we know Mal Meninga is to be the new coach of the Perth Bears, Rod and Gabi asked if that would have swayed Tom’s decision…it was a resounding no.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Seven thirty five tomorrow night at Geo Stadium. It's quarter
final time. The Hurricanes are coming to town and we
have a home final with the Brums. Tom Wright start
of the team and the Wallabies. Welcome back. Good to
have you in this morning. It's fresh as a daisy
out there.

Speaker 2 (00:14):
Good morning.

Speaker 3 (00:14):
Yeah, it's a lot more we're inside of too that much.

Speaker 1 (00:16):
How are you going with the with the rug up
and trips to the to the to the park and
all that sort of gear At the moment you've got
all the winter gear out obviously.

Speaker 3 (00:24):
Yeah, every bit of it's out and it's it's a
one where and it's a one wash straight up.

Speaker 1 (00:30):
Worth mentioning naughty season new listeners of the show. I
said the park, and I will talk about I will
talk about g Io or of course the field is
the park. Sometimes we're talking about the park for your
your daughter Indy, and that's hensive. That's why I said,
it's not season.

Speaker 4 (00:45):
It's snotty season. When it comes to daycare kids.

Speaker 2 (00:47):
It is absolutely it's not. It's food.

Speaker 3 (00:49):
It's whatever else you can throw or pick up and
drop on my shoulders.

Speaker 2 (00:52):
So it's that.

Speaker 3 (00:53):
But yeah, her park is the number one Park. She's
not too worried about joy.

Speaker 4 (00:58):
Does she go and watch you for home game?

Speaker 2 (01:00):
She does? She does Saturday night games.

Speaker 3 (01:02):
She will Friday last week, being a Friday night game
after a full day's daycare, that's ANOGA. She don't know
if anyone wanted to experience that at her in the grandstands.

Speaker 1 (01:11):
So whatever, it's the Thursday night routine for you. There's
so much sport on a Thursday night. Now, Once upon
a time, growing up, it didn't start until Friday night.
Will you watch the game?

Speaker 2 (01:21):
You watch?

Speaker 1 (01:22):
Was a Newcastle last night?

Speaker 2 (01:23):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (01:23):
God, it's one of those one Thursday night at seven
fifty feels like that's just lots off and it's getting
ready for Friday morning. But I'm a little bit invested
because it was obviously versus my old team and film.
My boys still that manly, So I put the pins
in their eyes to try and keep the eyelids open.
But yeah, halftime, I called it quits.

Speaker 2 (01:42):
I was no good. I was gone.

Speaker 1 (01:44):
We didn't talk in any real great, great detail because
to be honest with you, I kinda I mean, you
were there. You knew obviously how negotiations were going with
continuing with the brums, but for the rest of us
it was an exciting surprise. Did did your old team
manly you know? Did they have a sniff they? Can
you talk about any of the NRAL clubs that took
any interest?

Speaker 2 (02:04):
I don't know. Mainly in particular, I don't think did know.

Speaker 3 (02:07):
It was more I think there was a little bit
of chat and create a little bit of a snowball around.

Speaker 2 (02:13):
Obviously that new side in Perth was getting talked about
a lot.

Speaker 3 (02:15):
But I think I made mention of it that I
was really fortunate in the sense that Rugby Australia in
particular they just did the negotiations.

Speaker 2 (02:24):
Pretty much solely with my agent, so that was very
pleasing for me.

Speaker 3 (02:27):
So when it was time to sort of come around
and actually finalize it, that was sort of all I
sort of got to see. And the league chat was
very much the same, very background.

Speaker 1 (02:35):
You obviously enjoyed both both codes. Do you take any
interest in the AFL? You know, just as a bloke
who enjoys watching sport.

Speaker 2 (02:42):
Not so much the AFL.

Speaker 3 (02:43):
But my grandmother's a diehard Swanys fan, so anytime she says,
am I going to be watching tomorrow?

Speaker 2 (02:47):
I just tell her.

Speaker 5 (02:48):
Yes, yes, you mentioned a new team in Perth in
the NRL, and it was announced yesterday. That looks like
melmon Inger's going up there to coach. Would that assuage you?

Speaker 3 (02:58):
He's pretty pretty Handica, but I don't really like him
because he used to give me so well as a
hiding right, yeah, yeah, I got a vendetta against.

Speaker 4 (03:09):
What I swage, but not the right way.

Speaker 2 (03:11):
Well, yeah, I don't know.

Speaker 3 (03:12):
If I can never forgive him fortys as a state
for eight series in a row or whatever.

Speaker 1 (03:16):
It also as someone who again likes both codes. And
you're imagine you're in the depths.

Speaker 2 (03:22):
Of Bluey at the moment, right yep.

Speaker 1 (03:24):
So you watch the State of Origin episode.

Speaker 3 (03:28):
And we've watched them all yeah, right, we just put
the theme song on at the moment.

Speaker 2 (03:32):
Yes, the whole house.

Speaker 1 (03:35):
Yes, at the end of that episode, because it's talk
about you know, state versus state, mate versus mate. But
at the end of the episode, the Kiwi Dogs, I
guess the what are they? The you know, the cattle dogs,
the Kelpies. The Kelpies turn up and they support New
Zealand because they're sheep dogs, right, and and Binger and

(03:56):
Bingo's dad, Sorry, Blue Bingo and Bluey's dad banded come
out and he's painted himself all yellow and green, in
other words, representing the entire nation as a brumby sorry
as a wallaby. Was that cool to actually see one
of your car if, one of your cartoon heroes, but
actually turn up as a wallaby?

Speaker 3 (04:15):
Well, he's absolutely my cartoon hero. Now I actually have
to tip my hat to blue there's a show. They're
pretty like, they're very the small messaging is pretty incredible
that they do, Like they make Bluey and being pick
up all the toys before.

Speaker 2 (04:29):
They can eat dinner. It just all the small stuff.

Speaker 3 (04:31):
I know. Actually they're starting to enjoy the storyline's at
stages of episodes, I'm like, God, this is riveting, Like
what's going to do? And then I see him like
doing the small stuff, and I'm like fair play.

Speaker 2 (04:40):
And then I'm looking at my daughter and not picking up.

Speaker 4 (04:44):
What are you learning?

Speaker 2 (04:46):
Why am I enjoying this more than you?

Speaker 4 (04:48):
I get so invested in the show.

Speaker 5 (04:50):
My daughter's off and she's in another room wreaking havoc
and I'm like, oh my god, what happened?

Speaker 4 (04:57):
Addictive?

Speaker 2 (04:58):
All right?

Speaker 1 (04:58):
This game tomorrow and night Look, it's not sudden death,
but it could be. And we don't have a guaranteed
double chance, and there's just ended up being so many
machinations when you come off the game last week, and
I said to you when you came in here off here, hey,
you rather get one of those out of the way,
other than you know, before you get two finals, you've done.
What that happening tomorrow night. What's the feeling amongst the
team as far as the resolve is concerned.

Speaker 3 (05:19):
Yeah, I think we're able to enjoy sort of the
weekend that was because it was a Friday night game
last week, so you get those sort of extra day
on the Saturday and Sunday to sort of to sort
of mope about because all of us all felt like
we're hard done by, slash, disappointed, slash whatever else we're feeling.
So yeah, Monday morning, we rolled in really fresh, really excited.
Another game at home, get to sort of be rewarded

(05:42):
in the sense of a sort of a season of
a bit more consistency being rewarded with a home game
in a quarterfinals. So that's nice, and we're looking to
be able to turn up and reward our home fans
that brave the cold again this week, which would be cool.

Speaker 1 (05:54):
Well, home fans can bearns. Everyone, Let's go and reward
the team for a fantastic season. But we spoke about it, Craik.
It only feels like weeks ago. But at the very
start of the season we have at so many so
closest and I know that you as a team winning
this year and we're not. We're doing nothing other than
winning this championship. And homeground advantage is only an advantage

(06:14):
when we show up. So let's get there Saturdays out
Geo Stadium, seven thirty five. The Hurricanes, they'll visit and
they'll go home with the tail between their legs. The
Brummy's getting it done tom right. Good luck out there mate.
We look forward to chatting to you about another final
this time next week.

Speaker 2 (06:28):
Cool enjoy it, Thanks guys,