{"id":818784,"date":"2026-07-23T13:32:17","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T13:32:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/818784\/"},"modified":"2026-07-23T13:32:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T13:32:17","slug":"holding-me-to-ransom-ex-coach-exposes-tigers-pattern-after-shock-self-withdrawal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/818784\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Holding me to ransom\u2019: Ex-coach exposes Tiger\u2019s pattern after shock self-withdrawal"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The Adam Doueihi saga has taken another twist with former Wests Tigers interim head coach Brett Kimmorley revealing that he found himself in a similar position involving the talented playmaker.<\/p>\n<p>The revelation comes after the star halfback sensationally withdrew from Saturday\u2019s showdown with the Raiders following a reported dispute with coach Benji Marshall.<\/p>\n<p>Watch every game of every round of the NRL Premiership LIVE with no ad-breaks during play on FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? <a href=\"https:\/\/kayosports.com.au\/en-AU\/welcome\/nrl?extcamp=fsaeditoriallinkleague-edt-fsp-lnk-awr-grc-nrl-kyo&amp;channel=fsa&amp;campaign=fsacontra\" title=\"kayosports.com.au\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Join now and get your first month for just $1<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><img class=\"i-amphtml-fill-content i-amphtml-replaced-content\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/poster-fallback.png\"\/><\/p>\n<p>The club has confirmed Doueihi won\u2019t play in the nation\u2019s capital, with young gun Javon Andrews named to make his NRL debut in the halves alongside Jarome Luai, who will join the Eels next year before he moves to PNG.<\/p>\n<p>Code Sports <a href=\"https:\/\/www.codesports.com.au\/nrl\/tigers-star-adam-douehi-walks-out-of-training-after-heated-argument-with-benji-marshall\/news-story\/3a3ec182c3d85124a5e064802e654282\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">first reported the bombshell news<\/a>, with Doueihi not training on Thursday after he was told he\u2019d be playing lock instead of in the halves where he\u2019s shone as their best player this year.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAdam won\u2019t be playing this weekend,\u201d Tigers chief executive Shaun Mielekamp told the Daily Telegraph.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAdam and Benji met this morning to discuss a plan for the weekend. Benji made a call on what\u2019s best for the team but as a result Adam has asked for some time off and we agree to that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Speaking on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sen.com.au\/news\/2026\/07\/23\/nrl-2026-brett-kimmorley-reveals-adam-doueihi-previously-made-positional-demands-at-wests-tigers\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">SEN Radio on Thursday evening,<\/a> Kimmorley had revealed that Doueihi\u2019s latest Tigers drama is nothing new, revealing he was forced to deal with a similar situation when he was in charge of the joint venture.<\/p>\n<p>Doueihi reportedly rules himself out | 01:11<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn my time as an interim head coach at the Wests Tigers, as a very green interim head coach, Adam was coming back from an ACL,\u201d Kimmorley said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c(He) was playing limited minutes in a couple of games, playing centre in games to make sure his load was unavailable.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI had a conversation with Adam Doueihi, (where he said) if I\u2019ve not been picked at 5\/8 in first grade, I\u2019d rather play 5\/8 in reserve grade. I didn\u2019t have the balls to do it as the coach at that stage.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI handed that conversation onto someone else at the club who was much more superior than myself. Tim Sheens was the director of football at that stage at the Wests Tigers.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was a bit unsure about where that left me as the coach. This is after team selection, (he) had been picked to play centre a number of times, and his thoughts was his body was good enough to go back to the 5\/8 position.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019d been given some advice that centre is probably how he should play the rest of this year and his words were purely, if he doesn\u2019t play 5\/8 in first grade, I\u2019d rather be picked at 5\/8 in reserve grade.<\/p>\n<p>The former NRL halfback admitted that he now looks back and wishes he had taken a stronger stance.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy mind now looking back at it, I wish in some regards I was strong enough to go, \u2018you come and tell your teammates on Thursday why you\u2019re not playing first grade and why you\u2019re playing 5\/8 for reserve grade\u2019,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut I didn\u2019t have that strength in myself to do that probably as a rookie coach, so that\u2019s why I handed it on to Tim Sheens.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was obviously a very, very difficult situation at the club. I can understand how he would have felt at the time. He\u2019s been out for a long period of time with an ACL injury.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s where I think it would have come from. But, to approach it how you did\u2026 that\u2019s probably the demand of holding me to ransom, a little bit of saying, \u2018hey, you\u2019ve gotta pick me\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Premiership-winning five-eighth Luke Keary said the situation is \u201calmost untenable\u201d while Eels great Nathan Hindmarsh said he would be \u201cembarrassed\u201d if he was in Doueihi\u2019s shoes and called for coach Marshall to drop him from the club\u2019s next game against the Eels.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019d be embarrassed. It is so bad. It is honestly so bad, not just for Doueihi but for Benji and the club,\u201d Hindmarsh said on Fox League. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not like he hasn\u2019t played that position before. He\u2019s had a few cracks in the middle and at 13 last year. The defence took it out of him a little bit. But you\u2019re one of if not the best player in the side at the moment. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cEveryone is talking about how well you are playing. You are in the talk about Origin and then all of a sudden you turn around and tell your coach you don\u2019t want to play 13&#8230; it sounds like a spoiled brat. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cHopefully we\u2019ve got it all wrong&#8230; there has to be more to it&#8230; not just the fact he\u2019s been named at 13 and doesn\u2019t want to play. And now he\u2019s got the week off. Go play him in reserve grade.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Doueihi &amp; Benji saga explained | 02:13<\/p>\n<p>Keary, meanwhile, had been vocal in the wake of Luai\u2019s impending departure that it could lead to fractures in the playing group and suggested this could be evidence of it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a bizarre situation,\u201d Keary said. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn my career, no player has not played because they are played out of position. I\u2019ve never heard of it before. I don\u2019t know how he walks back into training on Monday. The other thing is when you do that to your coach, I\u2019m unsure how the coach can bring him back. It\u2019s almost untenable.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI said it three weeks ago when the Luai stuff came out (with) that decision, you\u2019d see things come out after about three or four weeks because there is going to be a lot of people in that club and team who weren\u2019t happy. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said before he was all-in&#8230; and there\u2019d be players that are against it and players who really back Luai and support his decision. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s (Doueihi) probably saying to Benji why isn\u2019t Jarome not in the team, I\u2019m going to be here next year&#8230; that would be one of his arguments for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Munsters set to talk with Chiefs | 00:40<\/p>\n<p>Doueihi signed a contract extension back in March to remain at the Tigers until the end of the 2029 season, but it\u2019s unclear if this latest development will affect that. <\/p>\n<p>The Lebanese international was originally named on an extended bench for Saturday\u2019s game but was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxsports.com.au\/nrl\/nrl-premiership\/nrl-2026-david-fifita-loses-at-judiciary-two-week-ban-wrap-adam-doueihi-latu-fainu-results-nrlhq-news-reaction\/news-story\/0e1d8038b2303e604d3e688ee2bf8238\" title=\"www.foxsports.com.au\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">cleared to play after a successful night at judiciary where he avoided a one-match ban for a high tackle<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>He sounded like a guy who was keen to help his team pull off an upset in Canberra. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI love being out there with the boys,\u201d Doueihi said after the hearing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI want to help turn our season around again. It\u2019s a good opportunity to go down to Canberra this week. They\u2019re on the back of a few wins so we\u2019ll go there with an ambush mentality.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Doueihi has been the club\u2019s best player this year. Picture: Brendon Thorne\/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>It was expected that he\u2019d simply slot in at halfback to partner Luai, but Marshall had other plans, which led to him leaving the club\u2019s Concord facilities.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, lost in all the Doueihi headlines now is rookie Andrews, who on Saturday will run out for his NRL debut.<\/p>\n<p>But Hindmarsh said Doueihi\u2019s actions have spoiled the occasion, with Panthers great Greg Alexander calling it an \u201cuncomfortable\u201d situation for the talented teenager.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow do you think young Javon will be feeling&#8230; how bad would you feel, \u2018I\u2019ve forced Adam Doueihi to have a blow-up with the coach\u2019 because he has to play 13&#8230; you\u2019d feel shocking,\u201d added Hindmarsh.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s the latest drama for the Tigers, who have lost five games on the trot and made the call to let Luai leave early despite him being contracted for the 2027 season.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m flabbergasted. You have to have that team-first ethos, don\u2019t you?\u201d former NRL forward Bryan Fletcher said on <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/senleague\/status\/2080188034549473627?s=46&amp;t=vELMEJb4ukJ1goYvFJa71g\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">SEN Radio<\/a> after hearing the news.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere a coach wants you to play irrespective of what you think (you play there) and I like Adam Doueihi but c\u2019mon Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Wests Tigers star Adam Doueihi. Pic: NRLSource: Supplied<\/p>\n<p>Justin Horo added, \u201cI don\u2019t like the decision to move him to lock. I think Adam Doueihi should be playing in the halves but if that coach makes the decision you have to play it mate.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt would be so tough to be a Tigers player right now.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Latu Fainu is also unavailable after he copped a three-match ban at the judiciary. <\/p>\n<p>They can\u2019t afford to lose Doueihi who has been a key cog in their attack, with Marshall remaining coy when asked about team selections on Thursday morning. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou always want your best players playing, and for us, it\u2019s no different,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Adam Doueihi saga has taken another twist with former Wests Tigers interim head coach Brett Kimmorley revealing&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":818785,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-818784","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/818784","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=818784"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/818784\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/818785"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=818784"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=818784"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=818784"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}