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Wests Tiger Robbie Farah has gone from being the club’s 900k captain and hooker to being told he has to play in the NSW Cup if he stays.
Now, after fighting his way back into NRL contention, he could find himself with a new number on his back for Round 1.
He has already lost the “c” next to him name having relinquished the coin toss to champion prop Aaron Woods, but with the team’s normal halfback Luke Brooks suspended, Farah is the likely replacement.
Brooks was charged by the NRL Match Review Committee following the club’s Round 26 match against the Dragons.
He was charged with a Grade 1 dangerous throw in the 46th minute, and will face a one-game suspension that carries into season 2016 following an early guilty plea.
Coach Jason Taylor is fortunate to have a ‘ready-made’ NRL class hooker in Matt Ballin (ex Manly) to come straight in and play 80 minutes, but he is light on for NRL class halfbacks.
Contenders include the experienced Josh Drinkwater and new recruits Jack Littlejohn (Manly) and Jordan Rankin, who made his first grade debut in 2008 for the Gold Coast Titans, playing a total of 17 NRL matches at the club before departing at the end of 2013 for a stint in Super League with Hull FC.
Rankin is still only 23-year-old can play a range of positions including fullback, five-eighth and halfback, it will be interesting to see what his new coach has in mind for him.
Wests Tigers are playing the very dangerous Warriors in Round 1 at home and will want to ensure they have their most experienced 13 starting.
The classy Farah has filled in at both 6 and 7 in previous years when an injury had occurred during the game and he is a natural play-maker with an excellent tactical kicking game.
Foremost in the coaches’ mind will be Farah’s organisational skills and solid defence.
Taylor will also know exactly what he will get with Matt Ballin, as he is very reliable as a tackling machine, a skill that has been sadly lacking in the Tigers in previous seasons.
He will know that Ballin will plug the middle third, while Farah is free to run the team and look for opportunities, especially with his flying machine fullback James Tedesco.
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