“It’s definitely home," Benji Marshall said in his first press conference today.
"I felt nervous coming here, but also still relaxed at the same time.
"It's exciting to be back.”
It’s just the second day back at training for Life Member Benji Marshall and although a lot has changed, he sure is glad to be back home. Despite the many new faces at the club, Benji believes that there is still a great vibe around the club, and he's humbled to be back.
“Walking in here, I didn’t know what to expect," he said.
"I suppose the first thing was it was the same, but very different.
"A lot of the people that used to be here have moved on. A lot has changed, but the feeling here is the same and the reception I’ve had coming back, not only from the players, but the fans, and everyone involved. It’s been humbling and pretty amazing."
His return to Wests Tigers was seemingly a long time in the making, with Marshall wanting to come back several times after his stint with the Auckland Blues.
However, it wasn't until a sitting down with new Coach Ivan Cleary during 2017 that it all came together, and Marshall could complete what he felt was unfinished business with the club.
“It wasn’t actually a real possibility until I made that call and sat down to have coffee with him and told him where I thought I could fit in and what I thought I could add," he said.
"And we just sort of shook hands after that coffee.”
“At Brisbane, the goal was to be in the top 17 and I got to reach that.
"Especially towards the end of the year, I thought I contributed a lot toward the team.
"But this year, obviously there’s a lot of things that I can bring to the club in terms of experience, and mentoring a few of the young guys. But my priority is playing and providing input on the field and that’s what its about more than anything from me”.
See what Benji Marshall had to say to the media in full today in the video above!
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