Wests Tigers rookie coach Benji Marshall has broken his silence on parting ways with his former teammate David Nofoaluma and who will replace Luke Brooks before Jarome Luai arrives.
The Tigers released veteran winger Nofoaluma from the final two years of his contract after a series of run-ins this off-season with new coach Marshall.
It came after Nofoaluma was issued a second breach notice in a month, having first been sanctioned by the club for turning up late to an official pre-season training session.
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Marshall sat down with The Daily Telegraph’s Brent Read for a lengthy Q&A on the eve of the season and addressed the Nofoaluma situation and the prized signing of Luai.
“I played with David and he spilt a lot of blood, sweat and tears for our club,” Marshall said.
“He’s obviously the club’s leading all-time try-scorer and he did a lot of great things in his time here, but it was probably time for him to have a fresh start.
“We both agreed that was the right thing for him. We wish him all the best.”
Marshall lured three-time premiership star Luai to the club from the Panthers on a five-year deal from 2025.
But rookie coach Luai won’t be discussed inside four walls of his club this year because it would be “disrespectful” to his current players.
“Jarome is going to be a massive part of what we do in the future but he is not here now,” Marshall said.
“Control what you can control now because a year is a long time in footy. From my experience, especially last year as an assistant coach, we didn’t have depth in the halves and it hurt us through the season.
“So to have depth in the halves is a good thing and competition for spots is a good thing. So you have to go out and earn that.
“(But) I want to win now. He is not going to help us win now. It is not a five year plan where I am worried about what happens in five years.
“In my career when I played I wanted to win every year. Whether you are favourites or wooden spoon favourites, who cares. That means nothing.
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“I want a team that competes on every play and wants to win every game. That is the type of team we want to be. As much as Jarome is a great signing for the future of our club, we won’t talk about him this year at all.
“I think it is disrespectful to the players we have now to worry about that and it is also disrespectful to Penrith to bring him into it.”
Marshall also said he won’t be afraid to give a youngster the first crack at replacing Luke Brooks in the halves.
“Lachie Galvin is in the mix to play in the halves. He could be one of the guys who start the season. He has to earn it. One thing I do know about rugby league players is if you are good enough, you are old enough.
Read the full Q&A in The Daily Telegraph here.
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