Rugby League: Jake and Kim McManus become mascots on short notice

Just a few hours later, they had pulled on a pair of Wests Tigers mascot costumes and run out in front of 10,000 fans during the clash against the Cronulla Sharks at Tamworth's Scully Park.

It was not exactly how Jake had expected the day to go.

"It wasn't really planned at the start of the day," he said.

"One of my good mates, James Cooper, works with Wests. He had a bit to do with running the day, and got a bit strapped for people to jump in the mascot suit."

Cooper called Jake that afternoon to ask him and Kim to don the suits for the game.

The pair thought it would "be a bit of a laugh" and agreed, but weren't ready for what followed.

"It ended up being quite rewarding," Jake said.

"I didn't expect as many people to come up and get photos with us as they did. You couldn't see much out of the suit, but to see kids smile here and there was good."

The McManuses, who are both well-respected within the North Tamworth Bears setup, hadn't initially intended to go to the game. As a local physiotherapist, Jake had been asked to come along to the NRL fixture and attend to the referees, but declined due to their family plans.

"I ended up seeing one of my mates from work there," he said.

"He was busy with the referees and I was in a tiger suit - that definitely wasn't the plan at the start of the day."

Though he didn't rule out a return to the mascot role if asked again, Jake said there might need to be a cooling system installed in the suit.

During the evening, he developed "a new respect" for mascots.

"I'm glad they don't do a bloody summer game in Tamworth, I definitely needed a bit of deoderant after the game," he said.

The heat within the suit was almost as difficult to manage as the lack of visibility outside it. Jake joked that he "knocked over more than one little kid", but sincerely thanked the volunteers from the Tamworth Dance Academy who helped guide the two Tigers during the evening.

At two-and-a-half years old, Peyton has just reached the age where she can watch and comprehend videos. Evidently, she found footage of her parents in the Tigers outfits "pretty funny".

"That was nice, to see her smile a little bit," Jake said. "I'm sure she'll find it funnier when she's a bit older."

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