Wests Tigers NRL Head Coach, Benji Marshall could feel the energy levels go up another notch at training this week with the return of halfback Adam Doueihi from a shoulder injury.
Doueihi lines up for his first game in two months on Sunday against the Newcastle Knights at McDonald Jones Stadium in Round 17 of the Telstra Premiership.
The match also marks the 10th anniversary of the Beanie for Brain Cancer Round between the National Rugby League (NRL) and the Mark Hughes Foundation (MHF).
“Definitely. Adam himself is excited to be back. That’s the most important part,’’ Marshall said.
“You could tell just when he jumped into training how things lifted around the energy and the confidence of the group. He's ready to go.
“It’s a massive lift. Adam brings class, experience, and confidence to the team.
“We’re just looking forward to seeing him go out and do his job and bring what he brings to our team again".
Doueihi’s inclusion is a major boost to the Tigers who will have their main spine of Jahream Bula, Jarome Luai, Doueihi and Api Koroisau together for just the fifth time this season due to injuries.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, the return of Alex Twal from a knee injury has been delayed with Marshall confirming the hard working forward will be back for St George-Illawarra next week.
The 10th placed Tigers, who find themselves only four points shy of the top four on a congested ladder, are determined to bounce back against the Knights (5th) to continue their charge towards the finals.
“I think they (Newcastle) are a great team. Justin (Holbrook) has done a great job in turning them around this year,’’ Marshall added.
“(They have) some outstanding players, obviously very dangerous with the ball, and at home, for this cause, they will lift.
“We’ve got to get ourselves right and fundamentally make sure we're on with the way we want to play our footy.
“We had our opportunities to win last week that we couldn’t unfortunately take, but we have got to turn that around this week."
