I dunno about Dylan Brown, he’s gone up quite a few levels in form since joining the Knights. Maybe not $1.3M worth yet, but they are certainly getting more out of him than we are Luai.
OFFICIAL Jarome Luai - #295
- Thread starter Spartan117
- Start date
Jedi_Tiger
Well-known member
who takes his place ?
Halbrowne61
Well-known member
Knights 2026 backline impressive, Ponga, Best, Sharpe, Marjou, Young, Brown, Smith.
Helps to have quality players around you, and Luai certainly doesn’t have that.i think that’s a big part of the problem.
The Chad
Well-known member
For his play on the field, he hasn't lived up to the money.
But realistically it wasn't all about that.
Bringing him to the club was about changing the club script. Becoming a club players wanted to be at.
Combined with Benji, I think that part has been a success.
He moves on just in time for Latu & Javon Andrews to step up.
My biggest fear/question is more about who in the team drives standards after Luai & Api are finished. Who is the cultural leaders of the club?
But realistically it wasn't all about that.
Bringing him to the club was about changing the club script. Becoming a club players wanted to be at.
Combined with Benji, I think that part has been a success.
He moves on just in time for Latu & Javon Andrews to step up.
My biggest fear/question is more about who in the team drives standards after Luai & Api are finished. Who is the cultural leaders of the club?
GNR4LIFE
Well-known member
You pay a guy 1.2 a year who doesn’t live up to it on the field. but that’s not what signing him was about? Lol what?
The Chad
Well-known member
Not what I said, but read how it entertains you
Tom Shines
Well-known member
If what you are saying is true … I assume they will be amongst the players they brought in , because “he changed the club to one that players want to be at “
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I think it's pretty clear now he's just in first gear until the end of his career now. Four rings, SOO appearances, automatic selection for Samoa. He's loving life.
He has proven he is capable of being an on field leader, as he did it when Cleary spent something like 12 weeks on the sideline and it was left to him, they didn't miss a beat. That's what pisses me off the most.
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426Tlgerland
Well-known member
At the panthers at that time he was in a team that was still way better than ours , when we loose 2 ,3 , 4 top line players we crumble , he was doing his bit early in the season and at full strength we would push for the top 8 we were proving that , injury to Luai and others has destroyed our season as we don’t have the quality back up players required to keep going , 1 maybe but with 2 , 3 or 4 nrl players out we turn to bottom 4 exactly where we are heading now , we loose to the titans this weekend and we could loose the next 3 as well , see where that puts us and then we have the hard part of the run home to follow , Christ we could end up bottom 2
Tiger-ferret
Well-known member
He should play for free
I am aware of this, I pointed this out in another thread.
In saying this, the first 6-8 weeks of the season we were at full strength, winning games well and he was not a feature when he was fit.
Jolls
Well-known member
The Cold Hard Truth About Luai: Why the $6M Man is a Victim of a Broken Machine
I am going to be unpopular here for my position on Luai. Not because I personally think he has been performing to his contract value – but because we are getting out of Luai what our system has enabled.
I have been banging on for a long time about eyes up players needing systems to be effective and we (Wests Tigers) are simply proving the point.
I’m also not going to let emotion and contract signing news get in the way of fact. We need to get over the "Jarome Luai isn’t playing to his contracted worth" rubbish and take the emotion out of the discussion. The contract value is irrelevant – it is what we paid to get a plyer of his style into our system. We chose to get him so we could build a system that works for Wests Tigers. The statement about his contract worth is subjective and completely misses the reality of how this bloke, and others like him (Munster and co), play football. It is focussed on him as an individual not the system that he is working with on the field right now.
Luai isn't a Nathan Cleary. He’s never going to be a robotic, structural half that dictates field position with long kicking. He is an instinctive, "eyes-up" player. He makes his living by shifting his tempo, throwing a dummy, and causing defensive lines to second-guess themselves for a split second. But for that style to work, you must have weapons around you; the ability to exploit the hesitation. At Penrith, he had elite hole-runners. At the Tigers, he’s creating space for ghosts.
Let’s look at the stats and tactical data from this (2026) season to understand what's really going on.
The Pass-Receiver Breakdown: Where Is the Ball Going?
If you watch where Luai’s passes are actually landing, it paints a grim picture. He isn't hitting hard-running edge forwards.
You cannot judge a half when the engine room is decimated. Our forward pack rotation is a revolving door of injuries and forced changes right now:
Despite all that is happening around him and the party dress tearing from the fanbase the stats don’t support the narrative. If Luai was genuinely playing poorly, his creative output would be non-existent. But the 2026 NRL data shows he is working overtime to spark our side:
Let's be honest: a lot of the vitriol on this forum right now is emotional. Because news broke that he signed a massive deal with the Chiefs. People are looking for reasons to claim he has checked out. It's confirmation bias at its worst.
The problem isn't Luai's effort or his contract value (less potentially last weekend – but that was a team effort). The problem is that an instinctive playmaker is playing in a team that does not have healthy, established hole-runners. He is playing in a team that is unable to provide the system it has been built around. This is a depth issue!
I’m not saying that he is playing out of his skin; but I have said all along that you can’t have an effective instinctive player without a system around him. What we have proved is that when we have our top players on the paddock we have the skills to execute the system and provide the platform required for a player like Luai to function. Let’s face it, and we knew the issue before a ball was kicked, our depth is atrocious. That is not Luai’s issue that is simply a reflection of where we are in our rebuild process.
We need to stop blaming the brickie for not being able to build the wall when he hasn't been given enough bricks to build it with.
If we’re going to pay out on any player – how about we link it to fact instead of emotion?
I am going to be unpopular here for my position on Luai. Not because I personally think he has been performing to his contract value – but because we are getting out of Luai what our system has enabled.
I have been banging on for a long time about eyes up players needing systems to be effective and we (Wests Tigers) are simply proving the point.
I’m also not going to let emotion and contract signing news get in the way of fact. We need to get over the "Jarome Luai isn’t playing to his contracted worth" rubbish and take the emotion out of the discussion. The contract value is irrelevant – it is what we paid to get a plyer of his style into our system. We chose to get him so we could build a system that works for Wests Tigers. The statement about his contract worth is subjective and completely misses the reality of how this bloke, and others like him (Munster and co), play football. It is focussed on him as an individual not the system that he is working with on the field right now.
Luai isn't a Nathan Cleary. He’s never going to be a robotic, structural half that dictates field position with long kicking. He is an instinctive, "eyes-up" player. He makes his living by shifting his tempo, throwing a dummy, and causing defensive lines to second-guess themselves for a split second. But for that style to work, you must have weapons around you; the ability to exploit the hesitation. At Penrith, he had elite hole-runners. At the Tigers, he’s creating space for ghosts.
Let’s look at the stats and tactical data from this (2026) season to understand what's really going on.
The Pass-Receiver Breakdown: Where Is the Ball Going?
If you watch where Luai’s passes are actually landing, it paints a grim picture. He isn't hitting hard-running edge forwards.
- The Crash Runners: Because our combinations are constantly changing, Luai is forced to dump the ball off to static props or flat-footed outside backs who are met by a sliding, waiting defence.
- The Sideways Drift: Without a dangerous second-rower running lines that effectively engage defenders, opposition defences don't have to respect all of the options. They can simply drift out, crowd Luai, and make it look like he’s "running sideways". He is doing that because our line running, particularly “the unders line” is poor and does not keep the defence honest.
- The System: He is linking up, at times, with someone on a good line and was working well with AD and Bula before the injuries started to take their toll. The key issue is that for eyes up players to function in a system, the system has to be functioning. When we play well, we establish the conditions to enable success; however, due to a combination of injuries and suspensions the fundamental platform isn't being laid down.
You cannot judge a half when the engine room is decimated. Our forward pack rotation is a revolving door of injuries and forced changes right now:
- Samuela Fainu’s Massive Absence: Missing Samuela Fainu to a long-term (12-week) foot injury has completely stripped Luai of his most lethal, explosive edge weapon.
- Zero Edge Continuity: Luai has had a new centre and second-rower on his edge just about every single week. You cannot build any fluid attacking timing when your hole-runners are changing every Tuesday.
- The Beaten Pack: With injuries and suspensions affecting the 9 and plaguing our middle rotation, we are losing the battle for running metres in the middle and quick play-the-balls have all but disappeared. Luai is often receiving the ball on the back foot, behind an ineffective attack. No playmaker alive wins under those conditions.
Despite all that is happening around him and the party dress tearing from the fanbase the stats don’t support the narrative. If Luai was genuinely playing poorly, his creative output would be non-existent. But the 2026 NRL data shows he is working overtime to spark our side:
- Linebreak Assists: 11th in the NRL (10 assists). He is finding the gaps and isolating defenders.
- Try Assists: 16th in the NRL (9 assists). He is still manufacturing points in a side that struggles heavily for red-zone field position.
- Kicking Workload: 7th in the NRL for Grubbers (12). He’s stepped up to take on tactical short-kicking duties that he rarely had to touch when playing next to Cleary.
Let's be honest: a lot of the vitriol on this forum right now is emotional. Because news broke that he signed a massive deal with the Chiefs. People are looking for reasons to claim he has checked out. It's confirmation bias at its worst.
The problem isn't Luai's effort or his contract value (less potentially last weekend – but that was a team effort). The problem is that an instinctive playmaker is playing in a team that does not have healthy, established hole-runners. He is playing in a team that is unable to provide the system it has been built around. This is a depth issue!
I’m not saying that he is playing out of his skin; but I have said all along that you can’t have an effective instinctive player without a system around him. What we have proved is that when we have our top players on the paddock we have the skills to execute the system and provide the platform required for a player like Luai to function. Let’s face it, and we knew the issue before a ball was kicked, our depth is atrocious. That is not Luai’s issue that is simply a reflection of where we are in our rebuild process.
We need to stop blaming the brickie for not being able to build the wall when he hasn't been given enough bricks to build it with.
If we’re going to pay out on any player – how about we link it to fact instead of emotion?
TheEnz
Well-known member
Great analysis Jolls, I agree with what you have outlined here and that Luai needs bodies in motion around him to be effective. Having said all that dont you think the attack coach should have ensured that all our top 30 backs and 2nd rowers understand this and have trained to be effective around him? they seem all at sea on that edge 80% of the time.
mtd#2
Well-known member
Luai looked a completely different player when he had may and fainu on the left edge last year.
Like most halves, he needs quality players around him.
Jolls
Well-known member
They still hadn't got the system right last year - but were working towards it. Now we have the system but not the depth - we are a work in progress.
mtd#2
Well-known member
Agreed. The injuries have really hurt us. At full strength I truly believe we are still in the top 4-6.
Rock Hopper Steve
Well-known member
It just seems to be a life sentence for us poor suffering Tigers fans with it all not coming together Jolls, we copped a glimpse at season's start and were all in a euphoric state flying high then the multiple injuries struck.
At least now players want to stay instead of charging for the exit door, it's looking like we might finish like the start of the season and just miss out on the finals as players come back from injury.
Let's hope it all falls into place within the next 5 years, so we all don't turn into cranky old pricks lol.
Jolls
Well-known member
Without knowing the detail I think the real issue isn't the attacking coach so much as the rotation of edge players. It took 12 months for Samuela to know where to be consistently, in time and space, when you have a player like Luai bouncing around the joint. I think our attack has looked poor on that edge more from timing than anything else. We are foced to run poorly prepared drop off plays as a result. This weekend I trust that Sukar makes it simple - he runs his lines regardless of the play and trust that Luai hits him at least 50% of the time. If he is consistent Luai should be able to find him.
Tim Sheens
Well-known member
I think it is fair to say that he does have enough of that quality when we have had all top 17 hands on deck this season, and the results show that. Sadly, our WT are not yet strong enough to be missing just a couple of our best, especially when not having a decent hooker, or Samuela and Taylan alongside to provide other targets.
Hopefully our remaining squad members, particularly those from 18-25 will become increasingly stronger to help cover such losses in the coming seasons.
Edit; having since seen @Jolls post above, please also see that.
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