Sydney Roosters boss Nick Politis has taken exception to a jab from Dragons players over the state of the club's salary cap.
In releasing their draw for the 2024 season, the Dragons posted a video to their club website with players taking up a game of Charades to guess each opposition club.
In one part, star utility Jack Bird is seen acting out what appears to be a brown paper bag signal, with off-season recruit Kyle Flanagan correctly guessing he had been told to act out the Roosters.
The brown paper bag jab has been a constant one amongst fans of opposition teams over the years, although the Roosters have never been proven to be over the salary cap.
Politis said on Channel 9 News that the jab annoyed him.
"Very much so," Politis said.
"It's just jealousy and it's stupid. What do you say about them (the Dragons)? They don't know anything."
The Dragons weren't the only club to take a similar jab at the Roosters, with the Wests Tigers setting their draw release to a "DJ mix tape."
In the section playing the Roosters, the mix tape switches to the Mexican Hat Dance with the Tigers mascot wearing a miniature sombrero, meeting up with another long-running joke from opposition fans around the Roosters 'salary sombrero'.
2024 Draw Mixtape ๐ผ๐ง
Click here to learn more about our 2024 draw https://t.co/i4xurTHOHX #ShowYourStripes pic.twitter.com/eARSvL151F— Wests Tigers (@WestsTigers) November 13, 2023
The Roosters could come under a poaching raid from both the Dragons and Tigers in the lead up to 2025, with the Dragons already promising they will make a play for Joseph Manu.
The tri-colours have less than ten players contracted for 2025 and have plenty of work to do off the field in confirming their squad, with recent reports suggesting they will also raid rugby union.