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Dogs down Tigers in pre-season clash | 01:36
A stoic new captain Jarome Luai bristles at the suggestion he is starting from a lower base at the Tigers and is excited to see what his new team can do under Benji Marshall in 2025.
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On the outside Luai is going from the four time premiership winning Panthers to the three time winning wooden spooners in the Tigers, but he doesn’t see it that way after a gruelling first pre-season at Concord.
“I wouldn’t say lower base, everyone’s on the same base at the start of the year and it’s a clean slate,” Luai told foxsports.com.au.
“We’ve been focused on brushing whatever’s happened in the past.
“There’s a lot of good buys I think, that have come from different clubs and they’ve brought in some pretty good culture as well.
“I think what’s most important now is connecting to a common cause and I’m not going to give any secrets away, but we’ve been working hard in the pre-season.
“Sometimes the scoreboard doesn’t reflect the work that’s been going on behind the scene, so I’m pretty excited to transition the work from the training field onto the big stage.”
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Luai not only steps into a new position of halfback at the Tigers, despite playing most of his junior footy there, but he will also co-captain the club with incumbent skipper Api Koroisau this season.
Luai admits he wasn’t chasing a leadership role at the Tigers, but believes the added responsibility will take his game to even greater heights in 2025.
“It does mean a lot,” Luai said of the captaincy.
“I think it just shows the faith that Benji and also the previous captain Api has in me and what I’ve brought to the club and to the culture.
“I don’t think it’s something that I was gunning for coming here, but it is a massive responsibility for myself and I think it will only help me grow as a man, as a teammate and as a player as well, so I’m excited for that.”
The chance to work with his idol growing up in Marshall was a huge reason why Luai came to the Tigers, with the pair exuding an air of mutual respect and admiration in the pre-season.
“I think it was good for me in a way to already idolise him, so there’s already that respect in being my coach,” Luai said.
“But I think in terms of the way we see the game, the way we want to play as a team moving forward, are really similar, so it’s easy to connect with him as a player and as a coach for myself as a playmaker, which is pretty special.
“What I have always done on the field, I’ve always just wanted to look like Benji at his best, so I don’t know if I can make that happen, but I’m going to give it a pretty good crack this year.”
Luai and Marshall have already had some memorable battles at training in opposed sessions and if there is an injury crisis, the coach wouldn’t look out of place in a jersey, according to the former Panthers premiership winner.
“He’s just a competitor, I think,” Luai said of Marshall.
“He’s in his 40s now, but you can still tell that the fire is still burning under his skin and if he had to, he’d probably chuck a jersey on him and play this season if he could.
“I think that just gives us a pretty good motivation that our coach is so passionate about this team and he wants to see us do well, so hopefully we can channel that energy, point it towards something good and do some good stuff this year.”
Marshall has been a huge advocate for his players putting their families first, even above footy, which is why so many family men like Luai have flocked to serve under him at the Tigers.
“I think him instilling that into the playing group just shows that he cares a lot about his players, not only his family, but I think he treats his playing group as his sons in a sense,” Luai said.
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“But we have all got families and things happen off the field away from footy and he said if anything happens, come and talk to me, be honest about it, and then at the end of the day you put your family first and you got to do what you got to do.
“So that’s amazing from a player’s perspective. For me, I would die for a coach like that out there on the battlefield. So I respect that from him and I can’t wait to repay that on the footy field.”
However, one of his new teammates Lachlan Galvin thinks Luai has taken his relationship with Marshall too far, joking that “he is the coach’s teacher’s pet”.
“Lachlan Galvin said that? That’s crazy,” Luai joked.
“That is crazy. Nah 1-0, I will let him have it. I won’t bite.”
While Luai wouldn’t be drawn on Galvin’s cheeky dig, he was honest about his young halves partner’s game and where he feels he can help him develop to get the team winning.
“I’m excited, he’s really raw that’s the first thing I noticed,” Luai said.
“But his fitness is there and his competitiveness is there and I think that’s all you really want from a young guy coming into the game.
“You want to see that they love the game, but they love their teammates as well. They don’t want to just do the highlight plays.
“They want to do those dirty 1% plays, which I think that’s important to keep you in the game once you’re in there.
“So I’m really excited. He is an exciting talent and if I can teach him a few things along the way hopefully I can have a positive impact on his career.”
The Tigers are not short on exciting young talent and another player that has impressed Luai in pre-season is Samuela Fainu.
The biggest of the three Fainu brothers will have an increased role to play in 2025, after the departures of veteran second-rowers Isaiah Papali’i and John Bateman, but Luai has no doubt Samuela can step up.
“He’s a beast man, I’m really excited to form a combination with him,” Luai said.
“Hopefully I get to play alongside him out there on the edges. I’m not too sure what side he’s playing yet, but he’s definitely one of the guys that have impressed me a lot.
“I’ve always known he has that aggression in his game and he chases after blokes, but I think people underestimate his actual footy IQ and his footy smarts, which is what really has impressed me over the pre-season.
“He’s going to be a very good footballer for a very long time.”
One of the most eagerly anticipated clashes of the year will be Round 14 when the Tigers host the Panthers at CommBank Stadium on June 8 and then again in Round 21 at the same venue.
Luai and former Panthers premiership winning teammates Koroisau and Sunia Turuva will get the chance to play against their old team twice this season, Origin and injury permitting.
However, Luai revealed he won’t be showing any love to former halves partner Nathan Cleary until after the matches.
“Probably not at the start, business is business and when the jerseys are on and the footy boots are on, there’s only brothers on one side of the field and opposition,” Luai said.
“It’s an exciting match-up and I’m sure the fans are licking their lips for that match-up, but we have got a lot of work to do before that game, so hopefully we’ll be prepared.”
One thing the Tigers have got in Luai is one of the most successful players in the history of the NRL era after five straight grand finals and four straight titles at Penrith.
The Tigers are currently in the longest finals drought in the NRL stretching back to 2011 when Marshall was a player and they haven’t won a title since Benji’s famous flick pass two decades ago.
Luai isn’t sure how quickly he can bring that success back to the Tigers, but his experiences at Penrith have just made him hungrier and bringing a premiership to his new club would be the ultimate.
“I’m not too sure if it will feel different to the previous years, but all I know is that winning feeling and it’s addictive,” Luai said.
“I know these guys haven’t tasted much of that in the previous years, but that’s the one thing I’ve always wanted to bring to this club.”
STRENGTH
Spine. They may not be the best spine in the competition as CEO Shane Richardson suggested, but there is enough potential to suggest the Tigers could become an elite spine in the future. Hooker Api Koroisau is getting to the end of his career, but is still one of the elite dummyhalf’s in the NRL. Fullback Jahream Bula is an athlete with freaky skills and he has only scratched the surface of his enormous potential. Five-eighth Lachlan Galvin is arguably the best young player in the NRL and at 19 his potential is enormous to become one of the game’s elite playmakers in the future. New halfback Jarome Luai may not have played a lot of No.7 at NRL level due to playing alongside Nathan Cleary, but he has plenty of experience in the position in the juniors and stepped up in Cleary’s absence last year. The challenge will be to be a consistent player in the chief playmaker role week in and week out, but with four premierships, 10 Origins for the Blues and 13 Tests for Samoa, the 28-year-old has the experience to make the move a success and his best years are still ahead of him.
Api Koroisaau has a strong spine around him in 2025.Source: News Corp AustraliaWEAKNESS
Forward depth. The Tigers have recruited well in the forwards with Royce Hunt and Terrell May bolstering their front row stocks after the departure of Stefano Utoikamanu to the Storm. But they still look a bit light on in the back row, after the departures of John Bateman and Isaiah Papali’i. Samuela Fainu has enormous potential and Fonua Pole is an excellent prospect, but Tigers lack some elite calibre enforcers in the back row. The fact Jack Bird is set to play in the back row shows the Tigers are a little short in that area, particularly if injuries strike.
Jack Bird is needed to add depth to the Tigers forwards.Source: News Corp AustraliaIT’S A BIG YEAR FOR
Jahream Bula. The young gun fullback burst onto the scene with five tries in 18 games in 2023 and backed it up with 10 tries in 21 games last season. But despite that good return, Bula’s second season in the NRL had a touch of the second-year syndrome about it. After working with Greg Inglis, many experts predicted Bula would shake up the NRL, but he didn’t quite dominate as some expected he would in 2024. Part of that is down to the players he had around him and with Jarome Luai steering the ship, Bula should get plenty more opportunities in 2025. The 22-year-old has a strong spine around him and a big pack in front of him, so now is the time to take his game to the next level and showcase all his skills on a more consistent basis.
Jahream Bula needs to take his game to a higher level in 2025.Source: The Daily TelegraphWHO’S UNDER PRESSURE
Jarome Luai. After playing in the last five grand finals and winning the last four titles, Jarome Luai’s legacy at the Panthers is set in stone, but he is back to square one in terms of his legacy at his new club the Tigers. Luai has scored 25 tries in 131 NRL games for the Panthers, but he is exploring a new frontier as a full-time NRL halfback at the three-time wooden spooners. Luai not only won’t have the calibre of squad he had around him at Penrith at the Tigers, but he will be the chief playmaker everyone looks to at the end of every set. One gets the feeling Luai only feels the pressure he puts on himself, but externally there will be plenty of pressure on the Samoan international to turn the club around, after such a long period of poor results and his $6 million pay packet will keep the pressure on him from his very first game for the club.
Jarome Luai is the club’s new halfback and captain.Source: News Corp AustraliaTHE RISING STAR
Lachlan Galvin. He may have already arrived as an NRL star, but at 19 Lachlan Galvin is still very much on the rise and has only shown glimpses of his enormous potential to date. With Luai inside him directing the Tigers around the park, it will free up Galvin to play to his strengths and dominate with his running game in 2025. Galvin will be given a license to roam and pop up when he sees an opportunity and with a better squad around him, his performances should only improve this season. However, the club will be wary of second-year syndrome as Galvin becomes a marked man in 2025 and it is up to the Tigers and Benji Marshall to find ways to get the best out of the talented playmaker, as opposition teams target him more on both sides of the ball.
Lachlan Galvin hasn’t scratched the surface of his enormous potential.Source: Getty ImagesTHE UNLUCKY ONES
Brent Naden and Charlie Staines. A few seasons ago Naden and Staines were making grand finals and winning premierships with the Panthers and now they look like they might struggle to make the Tigers’ 17. The arrival of Sunia Turuva and Jeral Skelton has pushed Staines down the pecking order in the race for a wing spot, while Bula is ahead of him at fullback. Naden has admitted he had a falling out with Marshall last season and with Adam Doueihi and Justin Olam expected to start at centre, he may have to bide his time for an opportunity in 2025. Both players are handy back-ups if injuries strike, but they could struggle for game time when everyone is fit, which is remarkable given where they have come from in their careers.
Brent Naden fell from favour last season.Source: The Daily TelegraphPREDICTED FINISH: 17th
BEST 17
1. Jahream Bula
2. Sunia Turuva
3. Justin Olam
4. Adam Doueihi
5. Jeral Skelton
6. Lachlan Galvin
7. Jarome Luai
8. Royce Hunt
9. Api Koroisau
10. Terrell May
11. Jack Bird
12. Samuela Fainu
13. Fonua Pole
14. Latu Fainu
15. Alex Seyfarth
16. David Klemmer
17. Alex Twal
2025 squad: Adam Doueihi (2025), Alex Twal (2027), Alex Seyfarth (2025), Apisai Koroisau (2026), Brandon Tumeth (PO 2025), Brent Naden (2025), Charlie Staines (2025), David Klemmer (2025, MO 2026), Fonua Pole (2027), Jack Bird (2026), Jahream Bula (2026, MO 2027), Jarome Luai (2029), Jeral Skelton (2026), Jordan Miller (2026), Josh Feledy (2025), Justin Matamua (2025), Justin Olam (2026), Kit Laulilii (2025), Lachlan Galvin (2026), Latu Fainu (2027), Luke Laulilii (2026), Royce Hunt (2027), Samuela Fainu (2027), Solomone Saukuru (2026), Starford To’a (2026), Sunia Turuva (2027), Tallyn Da Silva (2026), Terrell May (2027), Tony Sukkar (2025, CO 2026)
Development players: Alex Lobb (2025), Chris Fa’agutu (2025), Heamasi Makasini (2025, NRL 2026), Lachlan Broederlow (2026), Solomona Faataape (2025), Reuben Porter (2025), Heath Mason (2025), Will Craig (2025)
2025 gains: Jarome Luai (Panthers), Sunia Turuva (Panthers), Jeral Skelton (Bulldogs), Royce Hunt (Sharks), Jack Bird (Dragons), Terrell May (Roosters)
2025 losses: Junior Tupou (Dolphins), Isaiah Papali’i (Panthers), Stefano Utoikamanu (Storm), Aidan Sezer, Solomon Alaimalo (rugby union), John Bateman (Cowboys), Jayden Sullivan (Rabbitohs)
Coach: Benji Marshall (2027)
