NRL news 2024, Paul Gallen exclusive column on Wests Tigers beating Raiders, contract of Stefano Utoikamanu

NRL great PAUL GALLEN will appear on Nine’s 100% FOOTY every Monday night of the NRL season, debating rugby league’s hottest topics alongside Phil Gould and James Bracey. Tune in LIVE at 7.30pm (AEST) on 9Now tonight following a bumper round 16!

Who saw that coming from the Wests Tigers on Sunday?

The team that had lost nine games on the trot suddenly has back-to-back wins and is looking pretty good.

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I said on 100% Footy a few weeks ago Canberra would drop out of the top eight, but I wouldn’t have predicted the Tigers to put 48 points on the Raiders.

There was a lot of noise around the Tigers, their players, and head coach Benji Marshall just a couple of weeks ago, but suddenly it’s gone quiet.

That’s what winning does – it can cover over any issues there might be at a club and it changes the narrative completely.

But it also changes the atmosphere within the playing group.

The feeling throughout the week is totally different after a win, compared to following a loss – and especially several straight losses.

And that feeling can be enough to change the mindset of a young guy who might have been looking to leave the club.

We’ve seen stories recently around Lachlan Galvin and Stefano Utoikamanu supposedly looking to leave Concord.

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I saw Galvin has pretty much now committed to staying at the club.

I’m not close to either of those guys and every player’s personal situation is different, so it’s hard to comment specifically.

But winning games in the NRL is a lot more fun than losing games, and their form at the moment might just be enough to entice a player to stick fat.

The feeling of winning is addictive and it’s what professional athletes chase, it’s the reason they keep playing.

Utoikamanu played really well against the Raiders and he is a pretty important part of that side’s development if he stays.

Obviously he has the clauses in his contract which allow him to look elsewhere now, but it’s getting pretty late in the year for him to find a deal elsewhere for 2025.

He may already have something lined up – I have no idea – but if not there aren’t many clubs who would have a spare $800,000 to spend on a prop for next season.

If he was on the fence about whether to stay or go, Sunday’s win might just push him onto the Tigers’ side.

His situation is totally different to mine when I was a young player. My introduction to the NRL was in a very successful Sharks side that was playing semi-finals regularly, whereas Utoikamanu is at a club that hasn’t played finals in more than a decade.

The Tigers have a pretty tough month coming up with the Roosters, Storm, Sharks, and Rabbitohs.

I still wouldn’t be tipping them to win any of those games but if they can jag a win or two in that month, it might be enough to convince a guy like Utoikamanu to stay.

Having said that, if the Tigers lose their next four games they are basically back to where they were a fortnight ago.

I think people are jumping the gun a bit on their turnaround – they’ve done well to win their last two games but that’s still only four wins for the season, which isn’t good.

They obviously have a heap of young talent on their books but people need to realise that development doesn’t happen overnight, it takes time.

They used to say it took 100 games to feel comfortable playing in the NRL.

I reckon that number has dropped to more like 30-40 games, given young guys are so exposed to senior footy now.

But that is still close to two seasons in first grade before you can feel comfortable, and a lot of these young Tigers players are only in their first year.

They are a work in progress and people need to pump the brakes a bit before declaring the team is ready to push for a top-eight spot.

I doubt the Tigers will even be ready to be finals contenders next year, to be honest.

If they win three more games this season I reckon that’s a pass mark – they only won five in 2023.

But there are some good signs under Benji and hopefully the young guys can be patient and stick it out, because if they stay together there will probably be big rewards down the track.