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2008 Wests Tigers season
The 2008 Wests Tigers season was their 9th in the NRL. Major signings for the 2008 season are former Dragons halfback Mathew Head, backrower Corey Payne, and back Nick Youngquest.
Season summary
The Tigers had a successful opening to the season with a round 1 win over the St George Illawarra Dragons, 24–16 and a torrid round 2 win over the North Queensland Cowboys in Townsville, 30–10.
Benji Marshall was injured in the third minute of round 1 with a knee ligament tear, sidelining him for eight to ten weeks.
Three losses in a row and injuries to hooker, Robbie Farah, kept the Tigers in the bottom half of the ladder until a round 6 win against the South Sydney Rabbitohs at the Sydney Cricket Ground on 20 April. Mathew Head returned to the NRL in round 5 after a year in the UK and recuperating from injury. Tigers then narrowly beat Cronulla Sharks 20-18.
Robbie Farah and Benji Marshall both returned to the team in the round 10 win against the Newcastle Knights. In a match that saw twelve tries scored between the two teams, Marshall scored two tries and kicked a 40/20. Mathew Head and Scott Dureau (Knights) also kicked 40/20s.
After a four game losing streak, the Wests Tigers ended the South Sydney Rabbitohs' run of five-straight wins, beating them 36–12 in round 19.
Another run of losses towards the end of the season kept the Wests Tigers out of the top eight for the third year in a row. The three losses coincided with the suspension of Todd Payten for a dangerous throw in round 22.
In the final match of the season, the Wests Tigers farewelled captain Brett Hodgson with a win over the Gold Coast Titans at Robina.
Players leaving the club at the end of the season include Brett Hodgson, Ryan O'Hara, Ben Te'o and Stuart Flanagan. It was also club CEO Steve Noyce's last year with the club.
2008 Season Results
| 2008 Season Results | Round | Opponent | Result | Date | Venue | Crowd | Referee | Position/16 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Win | 16 March 2008 | Sydney Football Stadium (H) | 18,211 | Sean Hampstead | 6th | |
| 24 - Wests Tigers (Tries: Fulton, Lawrence, Farah, Moltzen; Goals: Hodgson 4/4) | ||||||||
| 2 | North Queensland Cowboys | Win | 22 March 2008 | Dairy Farmers Stadium (A) | 20,655 | Tony De Las Heras | 2nd | |
| 30 - Wests Tigers (Tries: Farah, Harrison, Lawrence, Moltzen, Fulton; Goals: Hodgson 3/3 Lawrence 2/5) | ||||||||
| 3 | Bulldogs | Loss | 30 March 2008 | ANZ Stadium (A) | 21,546 | Jared Maxwell | 6th | |
| 32 - Bulldogs (Tries: Patten 2, El Masri, S Williams, Nanai, Ryan; Goals: El Masri 4/6) | ||||||||
| 4 | Penrith Panthers | Loss | 7 April 2008 | Campbelltown Stadium (H) | 11,898 | Jason Robinson | 11th | |
| 30 - Penrith Panthers (Tries: Priddis, Jennings, Blair, Gordon, Tighe; Goals: Sammut 5/6 ) | ||||||||
| 5 | Canberra Raiders | |||||||
| 1989 League Legends Cup | Loss | 13 April 2008 | Canberra Stadium (A) | 12,240 | Sean Hampstead | 10th | ||
| 30 - Canberra Raiders (Tries:Purtell 3, Tilse, Tongue, Carney; Goals: Carney 3/6) | ||||||||
| 6 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Win | 20 April 2008 | SCG (H) | 19,122 | Ben Cummins | 8th | |
| 30 - Wests Tigers (Tries: Heighington, Collis, Te'o, Lawrence, Flanagan; Goals: Hodgson 5/5) | ||||||||
| 7 | Cronulla Sharks | Win | 27 April 2008 | Toyota Stadium (A) | 17,241 | Shayne Hayne | 7th | |
| 20 - Wests Tigers (Tries: Lawrence 2, Heighington, Hodgson; Goals: Hodgson 2/4) | ||||||||
| 8 | Brisbane Broncos | Loss | 3 May 2008 | ANZ Stadium (H) | 11,177 | Tony Archer | 8th | |
| 34 - Brisbane Broncos (Tries: Robinson 2, Kemp, Thaiday, Hunt, Wallace; Goals: Ennis 4/5, Wallace 1/1) | ||||||||
| 9 | Bye | |||||||
| 10 | Newcastle Knights | Win | 18 May 2008 | EnergyAustralia Stadium (A) | 20,154 | Sean Hampstead | 8th | |
| 38 - Wests Tigers (Tries: Hodgson 2, Marshall 2, Fulton, McDonnell, Te'o; Goals:Hodgson 5/7 ) | ||||||||
| 11 | Gold Coast Titans | Win | 25 May 2008 | Leichhardt Oval (H) | 17,493 | Shayne Hayne | 7th | |
| 20 - Wests Tigers (Tries:Te'o, Farah, Hodgson; Goals:Hodgson 3/4 ) | ||||||||
| 12 | Sydney Roosters | Loss | 2 June 2008 | Sydney Football Stadium (A) | 15,204 | Tony Archer | 8th | |
| 19 - Sydney Roosters (Tries:M Aubusson 2, Roberts; Goals:Fitzgibbon 3/3; Field Goal:Pearce 1 ) | ||||||||
| 13 | North Queensland Cowboys | Win | 7 June 2008 | Campbelltown Stadium (H) | 10,488 | Gavin Badger | 7th | |
| 40 - Wests Tigers (Tries: Collis, McDonnell, Head, Te'o, Heighington, Marshall, Hodgson; Goals: Hodgson 6/7) | ||||||||
| 14 | Parramatta Eels | Loss | 15 June 2008 | ANZ Stadium (H) | 22,107 | Tony Archer | 11th | |
| 44 - Parramatta Eels (Tries: Hindmarsh 2, Burt, Cordoba, Tautai, Keating, Inu, Reddy; Goals: Burt 6/8) | ||||||||
| 15 | Brisbane Broncos | Loss | 20 June 2008 | Suncorp Stadium (A) | 27,864 | Sean Hampstead | 12th | |
| 19 - Brisbane Broncos (Tries: Moon, Kemp, Kenny; Goals: Ennis 3/4 Field Goal: Hunt 1) | ||||||||
| 16 | New Zealand Warriors | Loss | 29 June 2008 | Leichhardt Oval (H) | 15,827 | Steve Lyons | 12th | |
| 28 - Warriors (Tries: Henderson, Fai, Fein, Hohaia, Rapira; Goals: Hohaia 2/3, Witt 2/2) | ||||||||
| 17 | Bye | 10th | ||||||
| 18 | Melbourne Storm | Loss | 14 July 2008 | Campbelltown Stadium (H) | 16,653 | Jared Maxwell | 12th | |
| 30 - Melbourne Storm (Tries: Inglis 3, Slater, Manu; Goals: Smith 5/5) | ||||||||
| 19 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Win | 20 July 2008 | ANZ Stadium (A) | 21,818 | Jason Robinson | 10th | |
| 36 - Wests Tigers (Tries: Tuiaki 2, Lawrence 2, Ryan 2, Farah; Goals: Marshall 4/7) | ||||||||
| 20 | Penrith Panthers | Loss | 26 July 2008 | CUA Stadium (A) | 14,075 | Tony Archer | 12th | |
| 24 - Penrith Panthers (Tries: Gordon 2, Iosefa, Jennings; Goals: Gordon 4/4) | ||||||||
| 21 | Bulldogs | Win | 3 August 2008 | ANZ Stadium (H) | 16,121 | Ben Cummins | 9th | |
| 56 - Wests Tigers (Tries:Gallant 2, Heighington 2, Te'o 2, Fulton, Tagive, Halatau, Marshall; Goals: Marshall 8/10) | ||||||||
| 22 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Win | 8 August 2008 | WIN Stadium (A) | 14,207 | Shayne Hayne | 9th | |
| 18 - Wests Tigers (Tries: Ryan, Marshall; Goals: Marshall 5/5) | ||||||||
| 23 | Parramatta Eels | Loss | 18 August 2008 | Parramatta Stadium (A) | 13,065 | Matt Cecchin | 11th | |
| 40 - Parramatta (Tries: Tautai 2, Hayne 2, Moi Moi, Hindmarsh, Mateo; Goals: Inu 8/9) | ||||||||
| 24 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Loss | 23 August 2008 | ANZ Stadium (H) | 27,564 | Tony Archer | 12th | |
| 48 - Manly (Tries: B Stewart 2, Menzies 2, Hall 2, Robertson, Bell, G Stewart; Goals: Orford 5/8, Matai 1/1) | ||||||||
| 25 | Cronulla Sharks | Loss | 29 August 2008 | Leichhardt Oval (H) | 10,766 | Sean Hampstead | 12th | |
| 32 - Cronulla (Tries: Taulapapa, Covell, Anderson, Seymour, Kearney; Goals: Covell 6/6) | ||||||||
| 26 | Gold Coast Titans | Win | 7 September 2008 | Skilled Park (A) | 20,703 | Bernie Sutton | 10th | |
| 28 - Wests Tigers (Tries: Moltzen 2, Lawrence, Tuiaki, Ryan; Goals: Hodgson 4/5) |
2008 Pre-season trials
| Wests Tigers 2008 Pre-season Trials | Opponent | Result | Date | Venue | Crowd | Referee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney Roosters | ||||||
| Foundation Cup | Loss | 23 February 2008 | Sydney Football Stadium | 15,197 | Sean Hampstead | |
| 34 - Sydney Roosters (Tries: Kenny-Dowall 3, Minichiello, Anasta, Tupou; Goals: Roberts 5/6) | ||||||
| Gold Coast Titans | ||||||
| Larry Corowa Shield | Loss | 1 March 2008 | Skilled Park, Robina | 14,386 | ||
| 32 - Gold Coast Titans (Tries: Minichiello, Cannings, Bowen, Atkins, Prince, Ngawini; Goals: Prince 4/6) |
2008 Season Ladder
Players Used
Current first-grade squad at 22 March 2008 (Debut: Round 1) (Debut: Round 5) (Debut: Round 1) (Debut: Round 15) (Debut: Round 15) (Debut: Round 2)
Gains and losses
| 2008 Player Movements | Gains | Losses | Player | Previous club | Player | New Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linton Price | Leeton | Ben Galea | Hull Kingston Rovers | |||
| Benson Tupou | Leeton | Daniel Fitzhenry | Hull Kingston Rovers | |||
| Noah Fotu | Leeton | Paul Whatuira | Huddersfield Giants | |||
| Todd Bridge | Taree | Ben Jeffery | Gold Coast Titans | |||
| Joe Latham | Wingham | Jai Ayoub | Sydney Roosters | |||
| Soueli Makaui | Keebra Park State High School | Jason Moodie | Retired | |||
| Lio Viaga | Keebra Park State High School | Jarrod Saffy | St. George Illawarra Dragons | |||
| Corey Payne | St George Illawarra | Nick Youngquest | Bulldogs | |||
| Nick Youngquest | Penrith Panthers | Luke Harlen | Northern Pride RLFC | |||
| Mathew Head | Hull F.C. | Mathew Head | St. George Illawarra Dragons |
References
References
- Liam Fitzgibbon. (2008-03-16). "Benji injury sours Tigers win". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-03-22). "Tigers too good for Cowboys". Fairfax Digital.
- (2008-03-30). "Dogs dominate timid Tigers". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-04-20). "Tigers keep Bunnies winless". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- Philip Henderson. (2008-04-27). "Tigers land baited Sharks once again". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-05-03). "Brilliant Broncos bust Tigers". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- Todd Balym. (2008-05-18). "Sheens lets rip at Marshall law". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-05-25). "Tigers hang on to topple Titans". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-06-07). "Benji back to his best". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-06-15). "Electric Eels get season into gear". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- Wayne Heming. (2008-06-20). "Broncos hold off fighting Tigers". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- Tom Wald. (2008-06-29). "Warriors topple wasteful Tigers". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- Steve Jancetic. (2008-07-14). "Inglis blows Tigers away". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- Steve Jancetic. (2008-07-20). "Tigers burst Bunnies' bubble". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-07-26). "Knee injury sours Penrith win". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-08-03). "Tigers condemn Dogs to new low". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- Adrian Warren. (2008-08-08). "Marshall puts Dragons to sword". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- Steve Jancetic. (2008-08-18). "Eels continue late finals burst". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-08-23). "Sea Eagles fly back on course". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- Steve Jancetic. (2008-08-29). "Sharks tame Tigers at Leichhardt". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-09-07). "Tigers end season on high". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-02-23). "Tigers fume over heavy shots". Fox Sports News (Australia).
- (2008-03-01). "Titans hammer Wests at home". Fox Sports News (Australia).
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