The Wests Tigers’ last two seasons have been nothing short of awful — but could the embattled club finally be heading in the right direction?
Balmain legend Steve ‘Blocker’ Roach believes “100 per cent” they are thanks to a “masterstroke” that has the club making more moves than it has in years.
A 13th place finish in 2021 sparked an internal review that was meant to put a stop to the mediocre results before it was too late.
But eight months later Michael Maguire was sacked as head coach and the Tigers went on to claim their first wooden spoon — and extend the NRL’s longest finals drought.
ROCK BOTTOM
When asked if he’d call 2022 rock bottom for the Tigers, Roach said: “Yeah I would.”
Besides some up-and-coming players getting an opportunity in first grade and the development of a shiny new Centre of Excellence, there wasn’t much to like about the year.
The Tigers started the season with five straight losses and lost 12 of their final 13 games to finish it.
The results were too much for even the most rusted on fan to endure.
“All I want to do every week is when they come off the field say ‘we were beaten by a better team but we tried hard’,” Roach said.
“I found myself turning the game off at times, I’d watch the first 20 minutes and then turn it off.”
He’s not alone either. In the final game of the season, Tigers fans left Leichhardt Oval early when the Raiders shot out to a 42-nil lead at half time. And those that stayed booed the players off as they headed to the sheds.
The sad part is though, that may have not even been the darkest moment of the season.
Two weeks earlier the Tigers suffered their biggest loss in history — and the 72-6 scoreline saw things turn ugly on the other side of the fence too with a fan abusing Adam Doueihi.
That same game, captain James Tamou was sent off for calling referee Ben Cummins “f***ing incompetent.”
It was a baptism of fire for Brett Kimmorley, who stepped in after Maguire was axed so quickly it’s hard to fathom how long he actually lasted on the chopping block.
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MADGE’S FALL
No coach has had to endure more external pressure than Maguire.
His last 18 months at the helm were particularly tough with a new report emerging every week claiming he was set to be sacked.
The heat was really turned up when the Tigers finished 2021 on the most sour note possible — a 38-nil loss to wooden spooners, the Bulldogs.
It sparked an internal review of the football department over the off-season in which Maguire’s future would be discussed.
It was assumed that he had coached his last game for the Tigers, but to the surprise of many, he was spared the axe.
However his support stuff weren’t so lucky with assistant coaches Wayne Collins and Shane Millard replaced by Nathan Cayless and Ben Gardiner, while football manager Adam Hartigan was also shown the door.
The club did not make their findings public but The Sydney Morning Herald reported the six key things to come out of it were: confusion around the defensive structure; an inconsistent attacking structure and too many team changes; Maguire shouldering too much of the coaching load; the club’s struggle to attract star recruits and the need for a much stronger culture.
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Landing Koroisau’s signature in the off-season and a solid effort against the Storm in Round 1, 2022 had fans thinking maybe the review was just what the doctor ordered.
But reality set back in and by Round 5 the Tigers were sitting at the bottom of the ladder as the only team yet to win a game.
The pressure was mounting once again and so Maguire was forced to take action. He did something that the review deemed a big no-no — make team changes.
Struggling playmaker Luke Brooks was shifted to five-eighth to allow Jackson Hastings to run the ship in the No.7 jersey and it worked a treat as the Tigers secured back-to-back wins over the Eels and Rabbitohs.
It seemed to be a masterstroke — until the Tigers slipped back into bad habits.
They won just one of their next five games and suffered a second-half capitulation against the Rabbitohs in Round 12, letting the opposition run in six tries in the final 40 minutes to win 44-18.
Maguire, as he always did, remained positive in the post-game press conference, saying there were some “really good patches” from his team.
He was asked about heading into the bye with nine losses and three wins, to which he said: “We’ll turn things around.”
But the Tigers didn’t turn things around and there was no more ‘we’ because that was Maguire’s last game as head coach.
Head of football Sheens conducted a mid-season review — and the comments from Tigers chair Lee Hagipantelis in an interview with SEN was an eerie indication of what was to come.
“As of today May 31, 2022, Michael Maguire is the contracted head coach for the Wests Tigers and there is nothing before me to indicate that is going to change,” he said.
“But will I guarantee anyone’s employment whether it be the head coach or the head of commercial or the CEO’s role? No I will not give that guarantee and I’ve said that before because the issuing of guarantees has certain legal ramifications.”
Maguire was sacked seven days later.
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BACK TO THE FUTURE
Cameron Ciraldo was the Tigers’ first choice replacement but after missing out on him, the club had to turn to Plan B.
Sheens will coach in seasons 2023 and 2024 with club legends Benji Marshall and Robbie Farah as assistants. He will then hand the reins over to Marshall full time for 2025 and beyond.
Sheens — who took the club to its maiden premiership in 2005 — rejoined the Tigers last year as head of football.
He’s had his fingerprints over everything since then and is the reason why the club is beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel, according to Roach.
“I think it was a masterstroke bringing Tim Sheens back because we’ve seen some movement,” he said.
“Finally as a fan I’m starting to see movement that I haven’t seen for near on a decade. In Tim we trust because he’s finally getting some things moving there.”
Besides turning around on-field results, Sheens will also need to prepare Marshall for the toughest gig in rugby league.
The Tigers are taking a huge gamble on Marshall given Ciraldo and Craig Fitzgibbon’s apprenticeships were close to 10 years, but Roach believes it’ll be worth it — especially when it comes to recruitment.
“I think Benji will most certainly attract players,” he said.
“Benji’s got that x-factor about him, he’s got that appeal and he had that as a player. I think he’s got that aura about him where people believe.”
“I think Benji will get the best out of ‘Brooksy’ too,” Roach added.
“A lot of people have tried to make Brooksy the overall organiser of the team where he’s not that type of player — they’ve got it wrong when they use him like that.
“He just needs to run the ball and do what he’s good at — he’s a good player.”
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ROSTER WOES
If all eyes weren’t already on Brooks, they will be next season.
The big-name, big-money playmaker is the Tigers’ only halfback option as it stands after the club decided to release Jackson Hastings to the Knights in a swap deal for David Klemmer.
Handy back-up Jock Madden and utility Tyrone Peachey have also exited, leaving the Tigers alarmingly slim in the halves with just one Top 30 spot spare.
Hastings arrived to Concord with fellow Super League recruit Oliver Gildart and brought with them a sense of hope. After all, Hastings was the 2019 Man of Steel and had turned his career around, while Gildart was an English international that was highly rated in the UK.
But Gildart spent a lot of his time at the Tigers in reserve grade, joined the Roosters on a loan deal and then got an early release to join the Dolphins in 2023.
Hastings finished the season playing lock despite being a specialist halfback and then was shipped off to the Knights.
It was a sad ending for two players that were touted as the Tigers’ big recruits heading into 2022.
Nailing recruitment an retention is a non-negotiable for the successful clubs but it’s been a sore point for the Tigers even before Maguire’s time.
It was two-time premiership-winning coach Ivan Cleary that signed off on big-money deals for Russell Packer, Josh Reynolds and Moses Mbye.
Cleary was also at the helm when the club lost James Tedesco to the Roosters.
And for what it’s worth Jason Taylor was head coach when a young Ryan Papenhuyzen and little-known Josh Addo-Carr slipped through the cracks.
Then there’s the bungled Benji Marshall exit, which was under Maguire’s reign. The Tigers icon may have found his way back to the club but it’s hard to forget that he had to read in the newspaper that he wouldn’t be offered a new deal beyond 2020.
The Hastings decision has left a lot of fans scratching their heads — and the announcement garnered a big reaction on social media.
CEO Justin Pascoe hit back at the critics declaring in a statement: “Not everyone will be happy with some of the decisions we make, but we do not apologise for these decisions.”
And Roach backs the club on this one.
“I’m a bit of a realist. I didn’t quite get the hype about his season,” he said.
“He was doing a lot, but I don’t know whether he was really doing a lot on the field with the amount of times he handled the ball and the drop-off plays.
“I’m sure he’ll do well for Newcastle but for me, I found there were a lot of words in his season — there was a lot of talk.
“I think Tim Sheens is smart enough without saying anything to see through that.”
Hastings, at the very least, brought that never-say-die attitude that the Tigers had been missing. He was also a fan favourite — that’s why Pascoe knew it would ruffle some feathers.
Time will tell if it was the right call or not.
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ROSTER WINS… AND THE GROWING NURSERY
Sheens clearly has a vision for the club.
In exchange for Hastings he got a veteran prop to add to a forward pack that’s starting to turn heads.
Klemmer turned back the clock last season as one of the Knights’ best. He’s also got 194 NRL games under his belt as well as 19 games for Australia and 14 for New South Wales.
“He’s one of those guys where you know what you’re going to get every week,” Roach said.
“Dave’s been doing it for a long time now, he’s a big body and has a big presence and he loves the game.
“I think he’ll be good for the Tigers, especially with those young blokes coming through. You’ve got to learn from the older blokes about how to be professional and what’s expected, so you need those guys in and around the club.”
Koroisau is a “great buy” according to Roach — and everyone in the game would likely agree. The 30-year-old is a three-time premiership-winner and one of the best No.9s going around.
“He’s a world class hooker, he knows how to bring blokes onto the ball and knows what’s needed to win,” Roach said.
Throw in Isaiah Papali’i — one of the most damaging second-rower’s in the NRL — as well as John Batmen, who the club is tipped to land, and all of a sudden the Tigers go from a last resort option for players to a club with promise.
And Roach wants to see them capitalise off that.
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“The biggest problem when you’re down the bottom, everyone knows what you need to do and what you need to get but the hardest part is attracting players and convincing people you’re on the way up,” he said.
“Now that we’ve attracted Koroisau and Papali’i, we have to go after a superstar, someone that can break games up.”
Is that player Mitchell Moses?
“No I don’t think so,” Roach answered.
“I’d like to have him back there, he’s a world-class halfback but I’m talking about a strike matchwinner like a Tom Trbojevic or a Latrell Mitchell.”
The Tigers are in the hunt for Moses and are said to be willing to pay the star halfback over $1 million a season for him to return to the club he made his NRL debut at.
Peel back the glitz and glamour of the marquee players that can deliver now and you’ll find the club’s pathways system is starting to boom.
The Tigers are just one of three NRL clubs that have more than one team in the Harold Matthews Cup (under 17s) and SG Ball (under 19s).
Their Western Suburbs Magpies side claimed the Harold Matthews premiership this year, the Balmain Tigers made the finals in SG Ball and the Wests Tigers’ Jersey Flegg side also made the finals.
The Macarthur Wests Tigers made the Andrew Johns Cup grand final and made the finals in the Laurie Daley Cup (under 16s and 18s regional NSW representative competitions respectively).
The Tigers’ NSW Cup side struggled this year, but only because the club used that grade to fast track the development of emerging talent, who were still young enough to play Flegg.
20-year-old Fonua Pole took that challenge in his stride and was rewarded with an NRL debut — and retained his spot in the 17 for the remainder of the season too.
As did 19-year-old second-rower Justin Matamua, who progressed from SG Ball right through to NRL in the one season.
Kitione Kautoga, who is tipped for NRL stardom one day, also got a taste of first grade late in the year.
But Roach warned these exciting prospects won’t mean anything if the club’s ducks aren’t all in a row up top.
“You’ve got to be realistic,” he said.
“If you’re great in the lower grades, that’s fantastic but how many players actually make it through to first grade?
“Those kids can’t do anything more than what they’re doing now and the experience of blokes like Klemmer and Koroisau will help… But I don’t pin my hopes on my club having good juniors.”
The Tigers are destined for improvement next season. A premiership is probably a bridge too far, but if everything goes right they could break that 11-year finals drought.
However Roach is just happy to see his club making positive moves.
“At least now there’s movement, they’ve gone out onto the market and made changes,” he said.
“They’re doing something and I’m getting excited about what they’re doing — they’re trying rather than just going through the motions.”
