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April 18, 2026 \u2014 9:45am<\/p>\n
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Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n Save this article for later<\/p>\n Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime.<\/p>\n Got it<\/p>\n AAA<\/p>\n Adam Reynolds started to spot the good things happening at Wests Tigers about 12 months ago.<\/p>\n That was around the same time his old teammate and Tigers coach Benji Marshall had reached out about joining the club on a two-year deal worth around $1.5m.<\/p>\n From what he\u2019d learned by playing against these Tigers a few times, Reynolds knew a handful of the younger players oozed talent, and they just needed game time and experience.<\/p>\n Marshall explained to Reynolds why he thought he would be the perfect halves partner for Jarome Luai. It was not lost on him that he had the opportunity to reunite with Api Koroisau, whom he won a premiership with at South Sydney more than a decade earlier, and someone Reynolds described as \u201cone of the most underrated players in our game\u201d.<\/p>\n Former Tigers CEO Shane Richardson flew to Brisbane and went to Reynolds\u2019 home to pitch him the idea of finishing his career in Sydney.<\/p>\n Naturally, Reynolds started to keep closer tabs on the Tigers than most other clubs.<\/p>\n But a deal with the joint venture club didn\u2019t eventuate and the Brisbane skipper re-signed with the Broncos for one more season. He captained the team to a premiership last season and is now in pursuit of another before he hangs up the boots.<\/p>\n He could not bring himself to uproot the family again, and he loves his new life north of the border.<\/p>\n Two years after Reynolds was cheered by Tigers fans in the eastern grandstand at Campbelltown when he cramped, then leapt to his feet to make a try-saving tackle, there will be no such love for the Broncos and Reynolds at the same venue. It will be standing room only on the hill.<\/p>\n The halfback told this masthead the Tigers were never going to remain at the bottom of the NRL ladder for too long, especially with Marshall in charge.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was only a matter of time before Benji got the boys firing,\u201d Reynolds told this masthead.<\/p>\n \u201cBenji saw the game in a different way to most when he was playing. He\u2019s one of the smartest tactical players I\u2019ve ever come across.<\/p>\n \u201cBenji was also great with team morale, and I knew he\u2019d galvanise this group and get them playing the sort of football good enough to win games and challenge for premierships.<\/p>\n \u201cI spoke with Benji a few times last year about joining the club. He thought I\u2019d be a good fit, and I thought the same. \u2018Richo\u2019 [Shane Richardson] also flew up and came to my home and pitched the idea.<\/p>\n \u201cThey both spoke about where they saw the club going. They spoke about how I could work with Jarome.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you play against people, you can sense where they\u2019re at in their careers, and where they could end up.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t know how long it would take a few of those Tigers boys to turn into good footy players, but it was never going to be far away.\u201d<\/p>\n Reynolds noted the Tigers were now excellent at making sure they turned up for each other in defence. As for their attack, it all starts with chief architect Koroisau.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s their heartbeat, everything starts with him, he\u2019s crafty, tough, and you can tell the boys playing with him,\u201d Reynolds said.<\/p>\n Koroisau replaced the suspended Isaac Luke in the 2014 grand final win over the Bulldogs, played finals\u2019 football with Manly, and then won two premierships with Penrith before he landed at the Tigers.<\/p>\n For his part, Koroisau denies success has seemed to follow him in the NRL.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know about that. I also won two wooden spoons in my first two years here,\u201d he said this week.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I have liked about us this year is our composure. We\u2019ve been under pressure, we\u2019ve been down by 10 points in games, but we haven\u2019t panicked. We don\u2019t look to change things. We\u2019re happy to stay in the grind.<\/p>\n \u201cI also like the overall culture we\u2019ve built. The boys are training really well, they come out every day, cross that white line, switch it on, and switch off the outside [noise] as well.<\/p>\n \u201cThat has to be driven by the senior boys. I take my hat off to Alex Twal, who has been massive for us, [and] Terrell May and Adam Doueihi. Those guys have taken the reins with that [leadership] stuff, and that\u2019s really helped me and \u2018Romy\u2019, and so we\u2019re not trying to do too much.\u201d<\/p>\n Koroisau is even having an impact on the next generation of Tigers, including Latu Fainu, who has never forgotten the one key lesson from the co-captain he likens to a big brother.<\/p>\n \u201cHe always tells us to \u2018pay the price\u2019,\u201d Fainu said about Koroisau.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat that means is get the work done; at the start of the game, get in the cycle, do your job, and the points will come later. Whatever you\u2019ve got to do, that\u2019s your job.\u201d<\/p>\n Koroisau is in the form that has him back in the Origin conversation. The Tigers welcome the return of Luai from a knee injury, as well as centre Taylan May (shoulder), whose individual match-up against Kotoni Staggs will be one of the highlights.<\/p>\n Marshall said on Thursday it was tough to drop Jock Madden, who had done an impressive job in the halves while Luai was out.<\/p>\n Samuela Fainu (knee) trained strongly, Heamasi Makasini is back on the left wing, where he trained all summer \u2013 and did his best to mimic All Blacks legend Jonah Lomu by running over the top of Dylan Edwards<\/a> in the trials \u2013 and Patrick Herbert, who played his first game in four years last weekend, has retained his spot in the centres.<\/p>\n Michael Maguire, who was sacked by the Tigers midway through 2022, returns with the Broncos, and loves nothing more than having his teams written off before kick-off. The last time the Broncos started outsiders against the Tigers, they were thrashed 48-0 during a Leichhardt Oval horror show in 2020.<\/p>\n![\"Wests](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0c2d6fcaa7c3eb48503fe25234eb7adb562e8ade.jpeg\")
Wests Tigers coach Benji Marshall is chasing a fifth win from six starts on Saturday. Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"Benji](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/2fd99868eb1b64d60fb8992719d618199849b8e3.jpeg\")
Benji Marshall tried signing his old teammate Adam Reynolds last year.Getty Images<\/p>\n
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