Wests Tigers stars have divided fans by using an offensive gesture from Arabic and Lebanese culture to insult Bulldogs fans during their 28-14 win on Sunday.
With just 10 minutes left on the clock, Jarome Luai put Samuela Fainu through the defence to score the Tigers‘ fourth and final try of the match.
Elated by their performance at stunning their high-flying Sydney rivals, Fainu’s Tigers team-mates rushed to celebrate with the try scorer in front of Canterbury fans at CommBank Stadium.
As they celebrated, Tigers players Brent Naden and Fainu trolled the Bulldogs fans by making a symbol with their hands – and social media users have identified it as an offensive gesture known as ‘the Khod’.
Naden and Fainu appeared to hold their hands up in the air, palms facing the fans, while moving their middle fingers downwards in a rude taunt.
A fan took to Reddit to post a video of the celebrations, captioning the clip: ‘Naden giving the Dogs the Khod’, with other commenters also referencing the gesture in their posts.
Pictured: Wests star Samuela Fainu (right) hits Bulldogs fans with an obscene hand gesture that roughly means ‘f**k you’ after scoring a try during his team’s win on Sunday
Tigers star Brent Naden (right) was also seen performing the ‘khod’ gesture, which is roughly the same as giving someone the middle finger
Fans claimed Tigers players performed the ‘khod’ as a taunt to Dogs fans after Fainu’s late try
Naden also performed the gesture after the match in a clip that appeared on TikTok
The phrase ‘Khod’ has several meanings. In Arabic, its literal translation is ‘take’, but the symbol can also be used as an insult in some cultures too.
The way the Tigers players used it is roughly the same as giving someone the ‘middle finger’ or ‘flipping the bird’, with some using the gesture along with the phrase ‘khod’ to say ‘take this’.
The gesture is also an insult in Lebanese communities, with one social media user writing on X: ‘What Naden did is the Lebanese version of the middle finger.’
The Dogs are known for having a sizeable following among Lebanese Australians and other Aussies of Middle Eastern descent.
Naden also performed the gesture on a TikTok video taken in a car before or after the game, facing the camera and saying, ‘Khod! F**king Dogs.’
Fainu and Naden’s gesture divided footy fans online, with some branding it disgraceful.
‘This is disrespectful and completely worth being looked at by the NRL. If they flipped the bird, which is what this action actually means, they’d be getting smashed for it. There is no difference. Pull your players’ heads in @WestsTigers,’ one wrote on X.
‘Is that what it means? If true, that’s appalling, there should be action taken against the club,’ another added.
‘They can’t take a win without acting like a bunch of flogs,’ a third fan wrote on Facebook.
The Tigers stars’ use of the ‘khod’ sign left fans divided, with some branding it disgraceful while others saw the lighter side
However, many other fans saw the lighter side of the incident and said the Tigers players should be allowed to celebrate wildly after winning the game, which was emotion-charged after Wests lost their star playmaker Lachlan Galvin to the Dogs in a stunning early-season defection.
‘Let the joint venture have their day, one finals appearance since 2011,’ one wrote on Facebook.
‘But the fans were doing it to the players ? I was literally there seen it with my own eyes. So they can but players cant give it back ? Give and take in life mate,’ another said.
‘Let them have there moment. It’s been rare this year. You know our fans would of been dishing it out I don’t agree with it but I also think there’s bigger things to worry about,’ a third fan added.
Other like-minded comments included, ‘What about all the people having a sook about this’, ‘Dogs fans gave them crap all game … good to get some back’, and ‘As a dogs supporter I think it was hilarious’.
Following the loss tothe 14th-placed Tigers, Cameron Ciraldo’s side have blown a golden opportunity to move atop the ladder as they hunt a first premiership since 2004.
Despite the moment, all eyes were on the Bulldogs’ mid-season signing Galvin before kick-off in Parramatta on Sunday but it was his rival halfback Adam Doueihi who stole the show.
Benji Marshall’s decision to shift Doueihi from lock to No.7 proved a masterstroke as the off-contract utility scored one try and was pivotal to another two on the way to a game-defining 20-0 lead.
Galvin was busy, booed by jilted Tigers fans with every touch, but couldn’t assert himself on the contest as Canterbury struggled for rhythm in the slippery conditions.
The Tigers faithful rejoiced when Jarome Luai drove a high fend into Galvin’s face as he ran the ball in the first half and then stood over the 20-year-old to taunt him after the tackle.
Fainu (centre) crashed over in the dying embers of the match to help the Tigers seal a 28-14 victory against the Bulldogs in Parramatta
All eyes were on Tigers defector Lachlan Galvin (left) after he jumped ship to join the Doggies mid-way through the season (pictured with Jarome Luai, right)
It was a showing of the Tigers’ intent not to be bullied by the highly fancied Bulldogs, who at one stage made errors in three consecutive sets coming out of their own end in the first half.
Superstar captain Stephen Crichton sent Jacob Preston and Jacob Kiraz over for tries either side of the break to pull the Dogs back into the fight.
But Canterbury will rue not scoring while the tiring Tigers lost Alex Seyfarth to the sin bin for a high shot on Harry Hayes.
It came just after firebrand Seyfarth was penalised for throwing the ball at Max King in frustration during the second half.
Crichton was lucky not to have joined Seyfarth in the bin for an ugly high tackle on Taylan May that left his former Penrith teammate unable to finish the game.
Doueihi, already the Tigers’ form player, replaced Latu Fainu as starting halfback and helped put Jeral Skelton over for first points bouncing away from three defenders and offloading.
He belted from dummy-half through the Bulldogs’ scattered defensive line on a 90-metre tear that allowed returning fullback Jahream Bula to score the visitors’ second try.
After right winger Skelton had a second try from Api Koroisau’s boot, Doueihi scooped up a drop ball from Matt Burton and sprinted 85 metres for his own four-pointer and a 20-0 lead.
The Bulldogs threatened to chase the Tigers down in the second half with some dangerous attack down the right edge.