But Penrith will have some competition next year, according to Montana, with sales for Bulldogs players Stephen Crichton, Matt Burton and Reed Mahoney skyrocketing during the 2024 season.
Since Montana started printing Bulldogs players in June this year, they’ve sold almost as many as Penrith. The two clubs have dominated sales this season, and Montana said that comes down to the passionate rugby league fandom in Western Sydney.
Sports Heads owners, Jake Fenech and Enzo Montana with some of the large cut-outs of players.Credit: Janie Barrett
“They’re the two biggest. They’ve got very similar fan bases, very tribal, very community sort of fan bases.”
“What you’ll find is if you watch a Penrith game or if you watch a Bulldogs game, their fans always are loud, they’re always noticeable,” said Montana. “They’re the fans that like this sort of stuff. Your Roosters fans, not so much. Sea Eagles fans, not so much.”
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Montana said the giant heads – which cost about $30 for a large one and half that for a smaller one– were a low-cost way for fans to express their support, especially given the rising prices of more traditional rugby league merchandise.
“Football is very expensive to go to, right,” he said. “And when you’ve got a family, not everyone can afford to spend $150 on a jersey … so we thought this is a great product where people can support their favourite player for less.”
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