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NESTLED in the middle of Paul Keating's former electorate, the Rae family are living proof inter-tribalism just doesn't work.

The two boys of the family - William, 13, and Adam, 11 - straddle vastly different subgroups, split into two by Woodville Road in western Sydney.

As William puts it, proudly wearing his Bulldogs jersey, "He got conned into going for the Eels".

The two Bass Hill boys will be separated for tonight's preliminary game to keep the peace - Adam will spend the game in Parramatta with his uncle, also an Eels fan, while William will stay at home.

"It's either that or they'll be watching the game in a cage at home," their father, Craig, joked.

In a region of Sydney which has in recent decades reconciled vast differences in languages and ethnicities, the Eels-Bulldog divide remains intact.

Tonight's outcome matters more than ever. Even as the region struggles to emerge from a painful economic crunch, more than 70,000 people have bought tickets for the match - a record for a finals game.

MP Jason Clare - who occupies Mr Keating's old seat of Blaxland, which covers portions of both Bankstown and Parramatta territory west of Woodville Road - does not believe in political-correctness in this tribal debate. ''I have blue and white blood in my veins,'' he said. ''When you've been barracking for the Bulldogs since you're six years old, you just can't help it.''

In a measure of inter-faith cooperation, Muslim and Christian leaders in Bankstown have been praying for a Bulldogs victory.

A spokesman for Muslim cleric Sheik Taj el-Din al-Hilaly said he follows the Bulldogs closely and is anxious for the career of his friend, Bulldog Hazem El Masri, to be extended one more week.

Down the road, at St Joseph's Catholic Church on Canterbury Road, the parish has been just as vocal. "We've been praying for a Bulldogs victory all week," Father James Collins said.

On Church Street, Parramatta during the week, a lone tradesman drove his utility truck with a Bulldogs flag through the sea of Parramatta banners only to be heckled by passers-by. "You won't be waving that next week," said one.

Peter Wynn, of Peter Wynn's Score on Church Street, said sales throughout the week have increased tenfold, as even Bulldogs fans made the foray into enemy territory to get their merchandise.

Parramatta fan Karl Doyle, wearing an Eels singlet, was in the shop to buy some last items to display on Friday night to show his support. "This is going to be one of our great wins and there's no better team to do it against," he said.

Whether or not that is true is a topic the Rae boys are willing to discuss endlessly - or at least, until tonight when they are reunited and one of them will have won bragging rights for the long summer ahead.
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