Another season has passed and once again the Wests Tigers proved to be a major disappointment, resulting in their coach Mick Potter being sacked this week.
Entering season 2014, much of the focus was going to be on whether the club’s impressive crop of rookies could lead them up the ladder after their worst season in history in 2013.
Although this year will be remembered as another train wreck which ultimately saw Potter punted, fans will remember it as being the breakthrough season for rookies Luke Brooks and Mitchell Moses, with the hope that they will return the Tigers to September sometime in the near future.
But what else went right and wrong for the Tigers in 2014? The post-mortem that’s about to be carried out will reveal all.
Wests Tigers
Final ladder position: 13th (10 wins, 14 losses, -211 differential)
What went right?
Following the departure of popular club servant Benji Marshall at the end of the 2013 season, it was left to the club’s crop of young players, namely Luke Brooks, Mitchell Moses, Curtis Sironen and James Tedesco to lead by example on the field.
The Tigers won five of their first seven matches and at that stage all appeared to be going very well. Some even compared the Tigers’ backbone to that of the Storm’s Big Three (namely Billy Slater, Cooper Cronk and Cameron Smith).
There were also wins over quality opposition including those over the Rabbitohs and Sea Eagles early in the season, as well as an impressive victory over the Bulldogs in Round 19 before hell would eventually break loose.
What went wrong?
The future of head coach Mick Potter became a major topic of discussion even after they thrashed the Bulldogs 46-18 in July.
Subsequently, the speculation surrounding his future would affect the team’s on-field performances, as they lost six matches in a row, most by very heavy margins. This included a 64-6 loss to the Cowboys in Round 22.
Not surprisingly, the poor finish to the season would eventually cost Mick Potter his job, and now the hunt is on for his successor where the Tigers should go for experience rather than gamble on an untried coach.
Additionally, the club lost one of the NRL’s most experienced players when Braith Anasta was forced to retire due to a biceps injury, as well as Liam Fulton, who hung up the boots after suffering repeated bouts of concussion.
Best win: defeated the Bulldogs 46-18 at ANZ Stadium in Round 19
The Tigers recorded easily their best victory for the season when they defeated an out-of-sorts Bulldogs side at ANZ Stadium in Round 19.
Playing just his third NRL game, Mitchell Moses was impressive, setting up five tries, as was Keith Lulia, who equalled the club’s record for most tries in a match with four.
The Tigers were down 18-12 midway through the first half but would then pile on 34 unanswered points in the last hour, as they moved to within reach of breaking back into the top eight after having fallen out of it in Round 16.
Sadly, however, that would be the closest they would get to entering the eight, as they would lose their next six matches immediately afterwards.
Worst loss: lost to the Cowboys 64-6 at 1300SMILES Stadium
But just three weeks later, the Tigers would suffer one of their most embarrassing defeats when they lost 64-6 to the North Queensland Cowboys in Townsville in Round 22.
For the Tigers fans who bothered to make the trip up north they will remember it as being one of the most inept team performances in recent history. Not since 2001, when it lost to the Melbourne Storm 64-0 at Etihad Stadium, had the club conceded as many points in a single match.
In the end this loss, along with many others during the season, would prove to be one of the final nails into the coffin of Mick Potter, who had been feeling the pressure since rumours of his imminent sacking arose in July.
The future
With Mick Potter having been removed from his post as coach of the Wests Tigers, the focus will shift to who will become their fifth coach since forming the merger between Balmain and Western Suburbs prior to the 2000 season.
Former Brisbane Broncos coach Anthony Griffin leads the list of candidates, and despite failing to land the club to its seventh premiership, is still a coach of good quality.
Having had his contract with the six-time premiers terminated in July, the fire in the belly will still burn and Griffin will be keen to coach in the NRL again. He isn’t afraid to make the tough decisions, as he did when he asked Sam Thaiday to relinquish the Broncos’ captaincy prior to the start of this season.
Nathan Brown, who now coaches St Helens in the English Super League, is another possible candidate, having also had coaching experience in the NRL when he led the Dragons between 2003 and 2008.
It was during his time at Kogarah where he built the team that consisted of Mark Gasnier, Matt Cooper, Trent Barrett, Luke Bailey, and many others, into a strong team which unfortunately couldn’t quite break through for a premiership.
Club legend Todd Payten, former Storm hitman David Kidwell and former Rabbitohs coach Jason Taylor, who hasn’t coached in the NRL since he was sacked for punching David Fa’alogo during Mad Monday celebrations in 2009, are also strong contenders for the vacancy at Concord Oval.
While it will be interesting to see who is eventually employed as head coach, whoever wins the job will inherit not only a team derided of confidence after three years out of the finals, but also a young side which has the potential to do very well.
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