G
Guest
Guest
‘There’s a shake-up coming’: League great Laurie Daley says Tigers need to ‘move on’ stars in roster overhaul
Rugby league legend Laurie Daley believes an overhaul of the Wests Tigers roster is coming as Phil Rothfield labelled their salary cap “out of whack”.
Mark St John
AUGUST 3, 2020 9:02AM
Rugby league legend Laurie Daley believes an overhaul of the Wests Tigers roster is coming as Phil Rothfield labelled their salary cap “out of whack”.
The Tigers have lost four of their last five games to sit 10th with eight rounds remaining and their only win was a 48-0 thrashing of the lowly Broncos.
“Mentally they aren’t strong enough,” Daley said on The Big Sports Breakfast.
“When they expect to win games they struggle. If you are a Tigers supporter you’re entitled to be filthy.
“I look at them and I see them as a 9th or 10th placed side on paper. They’ve over-achieved against some of the clubs, but I think there’s a shake-up coming and I think that needs to happen. They need bring some new people into the organisation and tap a few on the shoulder and move them on.
“There’s been two or three of these matches. It has to be a mental problem. They must just not be able to get themselves up to play those bottom sides. It will always hold them back.”
Phil Rothfield believes former coach Ivan Cleary needs to take some of the blame for the way he left the Tigers salary cap before returning to the Panthers.
“I thin Ivan Cleary still has a lot to answer for with the state he left the Tigers salary cap in,” Rothfield said.
“Moses Mbye is on $815,000 to play in the centres. I don’t think Russell Packer is entitled to be on that $750,000 to $800,000 when you compare him to the Panthers front-rowers or the Roosters front-rowers.
“I don’t think Josh Reynolds is a $750,000 player, but Ivan signed him on that sort of money.
“I think that salary cap is out of whack and it is going to take time.
“You need your big money players to aim up and it is not happening at the Wests Tigers.”
Rothfield backed Daley’s call for a serious overhaul of the Tigers roster and believes they should model it on the top five teams in the competition.
“I think you have got to have a serious analysis of the Wests Tigers roster,” Rothfield said.
“You’ve got to compare it to the Raiders, Roosters, Eels, Storm and Panthers.
“Look you need to realise they are not as strong as those teams. They don’t have the players with the capabilities to match those sides.
“What Michael Maguire has been able to do in raising hope is getting them to play to about 95 per cent of their ability over a six week period.
“But when you haven’t got the talent it eventually finds you out a little bit.”
Rothfield believes the Tigers are inconsistent due to the number of young players in their squad that are still learning about the grind of the NRL and a couple of veterans who aren’t what they once were.
“While they have some great young talent like Harry Grant, this is his first year of first grade and doing it over 20 weeks is different to doing it over six weeks,” Rothfield said.
“Billy Walters and players like this. You have got to ask if Benji Marshall at this stage of his career is a 20 round footballer.
“They have a strong forward pack now. But then you start to look at Moses Mbye and Chris Lawrence in the centres. I just think they lack a bit of strike power.
“Through that period when they raised their fans hopes they were sort of over-achieving and Madge just can’t get them up week in and week out.”
Rugby league legend Laurie Daley believes an overhaul of the Wests Tigers roster is coming as Phil Rothfield labelled their salary cap “out of whack”.
Mark St John
AUGUST 3, 2020 9:02AM
Rugby league legend Laurie Daley believes an overhaul of the Wests Tigers roster is coming as Phil Rothfield labelled their salary cap “out of whack”.
The Tigers have lost four of their last five games to sit 10th with eight rounds remaining and their only win was a 48-0 thrashing of the lowly Broncos.
“Mentally they aren’t strong enough,” Daley said on The Big Sports Breakfast.
“When they expect to win games they struggle. If you are a Tigers supporter you’re entitled to be filthy.
“I look at them and I see them as a 9th or 10th placed side on paper. They’ve over-achieved against some of the clubs, but I think there’s a shake-up coming and I think that needs to happen. They need bring some new people into the organisation and tap a few on the shoulder and move them on.
“There’s been two or three of these matches. It has to be a mental problem. They must just not be able to get themselves up to play those bottom sides. It will always hold them back.”
Phil Rothfield believes former coach Ivan Cleary needs to take some of the blame for the way he left the Tigers salary cap before returning to the Panthers.
“I thin Ivan Cleary still has a lot to answer for with the state he left the Tigers salary cap in,” Rothfield said.
“Moses Mbye is on $815,000 to play in the centres. I don’t think Russell Packer is entitled to be on that $750,000 to $800,000 when you compare him to the Panthers front-rowers or the Roosters front-rowers.
“I don’t think Josh Reynolds is a $750,000 player, but Ivan signed him on that sort of money.
“I think that salary cap is out of whack and it is going to take time.
“You need your big money players to aim up and it is not happening at the Wests Tigers.”
Rothfield backed Daley’s call for a serious overhaul of the Tigers roster and believes they should model it on the top five teams in the competition.
“I think you have got to have a serious analysis of the Wests Tigers roster,” Rothfield said.
“You’ve got to compare it to the Raiders, Roosters, Eels, Storm and Panthers.
“Look you need to realise they are not as strong as those teams. They don’t have the players with the capabilities to match those sides.
“What Michael Maguire has been able to do in raising hope is getting them to play to about 95 per cent of their ability over a six week period.
“But when you haven’t got the talent it eventually finds you out a little bit.”
Rothfield believes the Tigers are inconsistent due to the number of young players in their squad that are still learning about the grind of the NRL and a couple of veterans who aren’t what they once were.
“While they have some great young talent like Harry Grant, this is his first year of first grade and doing it over 20 weeks is different to doing it over six weeks,” Rothfield said.
“Billy Walters and players like this. You have got to ask if Benji Marshall at this stage of his career is a 20 round footballer.
“They have a strong forward pack now. But then you start to look at Moses Mbye and Chris Lawrence in the centres. I just think they lack a bit of strike power.
“Through that period when they raised their fans hopes they were sort of over-achieving and Madge just can’t get them up week in and week out.”
