Wests Tigers

Rabbitohs v Wests Tigers: Bunnies chase six straight; Bateman good to go

The Rabbitohs are the hottest team in the NRL with five wins on the bounce and they will fancy their chances of making it six when they host Wests Tigers at Accor Stadium.

The last time the Rabbitohs won five straight was late in the 2021 season as they marched towards the grand final and with their big guns firing on all cylinders their form looks every bit as ominous in 2023.

Wests Tigers v Dragons: Naden suspended; Ravalawa set to return

The drought-breaking win over defending premiers Penrith sets up a chance to chase back-to-back wins for the joint venture - a feat not achieved by the club for over 12 months. 

St George Illawarra have dropped their past four games by a total of 11 points, indicating while they're not getting the victories Anthony Griffin and his side need, they're certainly not being blown off the park. 

Dragons captain Ben Hunt will share the dummy half duties with Moses Mbye after former Wests Tigers hooker Jacob Liddle was dropped.

Panthers v Wests Tigers: Tago ruled out; Nofa, Naden return

The reigning premier Panthers and winless Wests Tigers are a total mis-match on paper but both head to Bathurst in Round 9 reeling from heart-breaking losses last week. 

Having taken an in-form Sea Eagles side to the wire last week, the Tigers should be walking that little bit taller despite their 0-8 start, but meeting Ivan Cleary's Panthers off the back of a last-gasp loss to the Rabbitohs is a tough ask for Tim Sheens' men.

Brilliant Broncos heap more Payne on winless Tigers

The last time Brisbane started a season 5-0 was 1998, when they went on to win the inaugural NRL premiership with current coach Kevin Walters calling the shots in the halves alongside Allan Langer.

Playing in his 50th NRL game, Jordan Riki got the scoring started for the Broncos when he stepped past Luke Brooks to dot down for the ninth try of his career.

 

Match Preview: Broncos v Wests Tigers

Reeling at the bottom of the NRL ladder, nobody was tipping the Tigers to defeat the red-hot Broncos in 2022 and few will be backing them this week but there were signs of improvement against the Storm and Sheens will look to build on those.

New recruits John Bateman and Api Koroisau did their best to lift Wests Tigers back from the Storm's early lead on Friday but errors in possession errors and some poor defence consigned them to a fourth straight loss.

Main man Munster returns to help Storm tame Tigers

After shock losses to the Bulldogs and Titans in Munster's absence, Craig Bellamy's men got back on track with a disciplined first half that laid the platform for their first home win since Round 21 last year. 

An offside penalty against the Tigers gave Melbourne the chance to open the scoring in the sixth minute through a Nick Meaney penalty goal.

On the back of a six-again call the Storm worked their way downfield and a couple of handy offloads by Josh King and Jonah Pezet opened the door for Will Warbrick to cross for his first NRL try in the 19th minute.

Match Preview: Wests Tigers v Storm

After a gutsy golden point victory on the opening night of the season, few could have predicted the Storm would stumble against the Bulldogs and Titans, conceding 64 points across the two games and lacking the defensive steel that has been their trademark.

The absence of superstar five-eighth Cameron Munster with a finger injury has clearly been a factor but coach Craig Bellamy has built his phenomenal success around a 'next man up' culture and won't be using the absence of the mercurial No.6 as an excuse.

Bulldogs v Wests Tigers: Pele ruled out; Bateman set for debut

The Bulldogs caused an upset win over the Storm with new recruits Viliame Kikau and Reed Mahoney showing their worth at AAMI Park to help give Cameron Ciraldo his first win in charge of the blue and whites.

Wests Tigers only have themselves to blame for surrendering two matches at Leichhardt Oval in the past fortnight with their expansive style of play coached by Tim Sheens in the summer clearly not working in the early stages. 

Wests Tigers v Knights: Blore withdraws; Gagai back on deck

Wests Tigers only had themselves to blame in a first-up loss to the Titans with plenty of opportunities in attack not taken in front of a vocal home crowd who won't want a repeat at the venue this weekend.

The Knights too were left to rue multiple missed opportunities with the ball in hand with the Warriors' defence on song to deny Adam O'Brien's side a chance to snatch victory.

All eyes will be on Jackson Hastings and David Klemmer taking on their former clubs.

Titans spoil Leichhardt party with gutsy first-up win

The Titans trailed by two points early but ran in three tries to lead 18-2 after 42 minutes as Tim Sheens looked on in concern as the home side struggled with a completion rate below 65 per cent for the contest. 

Tries to Adam Doueihi and Daine Laurie sparked the Wests Tigers with 15 minutes to go but costly errors and poor goal-kicking killed off any chance of setting up a big finish.