That's true enough. Let's hope he is a quick a learner as a coach. He has the intelligence and footy nous to turn it around - but we will see. This team really should be close to making the 8 next year given a fair run with injuries. Anything lower than 12th will not be acceptable to anyone I would have thought.
Signings, Suggestions & Rumours Discussion
- Thread starter MacDougall
- Start date
Great news about Fonua Pole.
Happy to hear he knocked back Melb.
We should sign his younger bro, family business.
Happy to hear he knocked back Melb.
We should sign his younger bro, family business.
Canadian Club
Well-known member
It's been a good week
It certainly has. I would expect one more roster spot to become available - either Bateman 'walking' or a payout for one of the youngsters - and then Sione re-signed. That would be about it for '25 I reckon.
Buttface
Well-known member
With the right attitude at the right price, hell yeah.
Kelce68
Well-known member
Canadian Club
Well-known member
The timing of the Pole re-signing and length of deal is interesting.
Seems like he is a fan of May signing and playing with some other good front rowers (Hunt and May).
Re-signing for 2 years until the end of 2027 aligns with the end of May and Hunts contracts. I would assume his management have done this as more money will be available in the cap for front rowers at that point. He will be due for a bigger pay day and the club will be able to provide that at the end of 2027.
Seems like he is a fan of May signing and playing with some other good front rowers (Hunt and May).
Re-signing for 2 years until the end of 2027 aligns with the end of May and Hunts contracts. I would assume his management have done this as more money will be available in the cap for front rowers at that point. He will be due for a bigger pay day and the club will be able to provide that at the end of 2027.
old_man_tiger
Well-known member
2 years good for Fonua and the club.
Is it actually happening this time? I kind of want to wait until end of April before getting excited but very hard to not feel a bit more optimistic after the last few days.
Is it actually happening this time? I kind of want to wait until end of April before getting excited but very hard to not feel a bit more optimistic after the last few days.
Does any know when this infamous board meeting is?
Interesting in Read's article it seems it has gone 3 to 2 to front the board.
Mason, Latu & Saukuru.
As some have said Saukuru's dad now coaching the Silktails. Surely he doesn't walk away from a top 30 deal but may be getting something lined up elsewhere.
Sione will be here, that's seems obvious from what has been said. It's a matter of Bateman & others.
As for those "others" the only one I see leaving is Doueihi.
Ben Hunt is apparently down to the Broncos or Dogs. If the Dogs land Hunt, maybe Doueihi to the Broncos as cover for Mam. If Hunt goes to the Broncos they apparently need cap space we may actually land Hetherington this year.
This board meeting can't come soon enough but I will back Richo. Everything so far this off season has been good news!
Interesting in Read's article it seems it has gone 3 to 2 to front the board.
Mason, Latu & Saukuru.
As some have said Saukuru's dad now coaching the Silktails. Surely he doesn't walk away from a top 30 deal but may be getting something lined up elsewhere.
Sione will be here, that's seems obvious from what has been said. It's a matter of Bateman & others.
As for those "others" the only one I see leaving is Doueihi.
Ben Hunt is apparently down to the Broncos or Dogs. If the Dogs land Hunt, maybe Doueihi to the Broncos as cover for Mam. If Hunt goes to the Broncos they apparently need cap space we may actually land Hetherington this year.
This board meeting can't come soon enough but I will back Richo. Everything so far this off season has been good news!
upthetigers
Well-known member
Agreed. 2 years is long enough to see if we're on an upwards trajectory.
magpies forever
Well-known member
I would also like to ask who were all these media roles / interviews for? Certainly not WT. We are paying his salary, well most of it, and he is doing media for England, Warrington, ESL and whatever commercial agreements he has I presume. We have had spoon too many times, Bateman has missed large chunks of preseason before, we need all hands on deck and readying for 2025 season asap. We have been accommodating before, no longer.
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Buttface
Well-known member
Fk gould.
Brent Read: Wests Tigers fans have plenty of reasons to feel optimistic in 2025
The 2025 NRL season will start with plenty of hope at the Wests Tigers thanks to the arrival of some key signings, a soft draw and some new standards, writes BRENT READ.
There was a sighting this week of Jarome Luai in Wests Tigers gear. Turned out it was an ad for Binge, which Luai has been hand-picked to promote along with AFL star Bailey Smith, but it was enough to get the pulses racing for long-suffering Tigers fans.
Just the sight of their $6 million man, lazing on a bed in a dressing gown adorned with the Tigers monogram alongside a stuffed Tiger, raised the anticipation as the countdown begins to Luai’s arrival at the club’s Centre of Excellence.
Luai isn’t due back at training for a few weeks yet, but his impact is already being felt, the four-time premiership winner having played a significant role in convincing estranged Sydney Roosters prop Terrell May to join the club.
Luai was in his ear while they were in England with Samoa, and no doubt continued the lobbying on their return to Australia. He clearly mounted a compelling argument, although you get the feeling the $2 million pay packet played a decisive role as well.
Either way, things are looking up for the Tigers as Luai looks to drag the club off the bottom of the ladder. The Tigers and chief executive Shane Richardson splashed the cash on the four-time premiership winner for not just his talent, but also his leadership and ability to be a magnet for other players.
So far, so good. You can see why Richardson chased Luai so hard, offering him a king’s ransom and the chance to be the main man to convince him to make the switch.
Luai can’t do it on his own, however, and that’s why May was another significant signing.
He will be a powerful presence in the Tigers front row and help lay a platform for Luai and young five-eighth Lachlan Galvin to weave some magic.
The Tigers have had an interesting off-season.
A new standard has been set at Concord, and the challenge now will be to maintain it when the blowtorch is applied - history suggests it inevitably will be.
The club has sacked one of their most promising youngsters in prop Jordan Miller and this masthead revealed the Tigers had handed official warnings to five of their players after they failed to meet the standards expected of them when they returned to pre-season training.
It is understood one of those players - Brandon Tumeth - was later given a reprieve when it emerged that he had started training early.
The others remain in the firing line - at least two will front the board - and there has been little sympathy from outside quarters.
If anything, there has been praise for the way the club has drawn a line in the sand.
The Tigers have been lauded for showing a strong hand after years of accepting mediocrity - Mat Rogers was the latest ex-player to savage the players concerned, claiming the club should get rid of them.
If only it was that easy. The Tigers would no doubt like to clean out some of the deadwood that has been weighing them down. That isn’t always possible given contracts are in place.
So standards are being set and the message has reverberated around Concord - shape up or ship out.
They still have some hurdles to clear with the playing squad, the future of English forward John Bateman among them, but things are looking up.
The draw has come to their aid as well. The Tigers have been handed one of the softest draws in the NRL in 2025.
They play Luai’s former side Penrith twice but the Panthers aside, they have a great start to the season and if they can build some early momentum, perhaps the tide will finally turn for a club that has been marooned outside the finals for as long as many can remember.
Wouldn’t that be something? The Tigers have been a sleeping giant for so long. Too long. The sepia-tone memories of 2005 are beginning to fade, so long has it been between drinks. People like this columnist have drunk the kool-aid before but even the great Phil Gould, legendary rugby league soothsayer, can see something is building at the Tigers.
Gould this week suggested they have a top eight roster, only fuelling the expectation at the club and among their fans. The sense is that coach Benji Marshall is slowly being given the ammunition to make some inroads in the NRL.
The 2025 season will start with plenty of hope. Luai, a soft draw and some new standards. Sounds like a golden opportunity.
That is not directed at you, but what ever he says is to apply pressure one way or the other to benefit his current or future agenda. He should be ban from holding a media position and a football club manager position at the same time.
weststigerman
Well-known member
If he wants to play lock, absolutely. He was probably the second best 13 behind Yeo when he played that role at Melbourne.
I have no idea why he's convinced himself that he's a better 9.
Buttface
Well-known member
$1k, brave. Good luck. 🤞
upthetigers
Well-known member
Trump, who is a convicted Rapist and Felon money
Simple - There's no standout 9 for the Kiwis.
He wasn't going to get himself the best shot at it playing 13 for the Storm.
