There’s no doubt that humiliating whack on the head by the Cowboys was a massive wake up call for everyone involved in the Wests Tigers club.
At least we hope so.
However, it is fair to point out that going down 74-0, after being 42-0 behind after the first 40 minutes, was out of the blue for this Tim Sheens side.
The head coach has been pointing to inexperience for any close loses, but the smashing at the Cowboys hands was something else altogether.
It also came after a string of reasonable performances in which they were simply outclassed over 80 minutes.
Of course, one sided scorelines do happen in rugby league, as the Bulldogs showed in their 66-0 thrashing just hours after the mauling up in Townsville.
The thing is, what can we expect to see from the Wests Tigers when they host the Cronulla Sharks on Thursday night.
Well, your guess is as good as mine, and Sheens himself hasn’t been out and about spreading messages of hope.
However, earlier this afternoon he named his 22-man squad for the Round 19 NRL match against the in-form Sharks.
There are a few changes to the side that ran out against the Cowboys last weekend, with Tommy Talau and Asu Kepaoa added to the backline, replacing Brent Naden (shoulder) and David Nofoaluma (shoulder).
Alex Twal is serving a one-match suspension, opening the door for Aitasi James to make his NRL debut.
The 22-year-old prop has played 35 games for Western Suburbs Magpies since joining Wests Tigers from Parramatta in 2021 and will make his first NRL appearance from the bench on Thursday night.
Pictured above from last week’s game is young hooker Jake Simpkin.
TEAM LIST:
1. Jahream Bula
2. Asu Kepaoa
3. Starford To’a
4. Tommy Talau
5. Junior Tupou
6. Daine Laurie
7. Brandon Wakeham
8. Stefano Utoikamanu
9. Jake Simpkin
10. David Klemmer
11. Isaiah Papali’i
12. John Bateman
13. Fonua Pole
INTERCHANGE:
14. Tallyn Da Silva
15. Shawn Blore
16. Alex Seyfarth
17. Aitasi James
18. Justin Matamua
