Wests Tigers v Sharks: Benji faces halves call; Big men on track

The Benji Marshall era began with a loss last week and the job won’t get any easier in Round 3 as the Wests Tigers take on an in-form Sharks side who have started two from two.

While there were some positive signs – most notably the performance of five-eighth Lachlan Galvin on debut and evidence of further growth from fullback Jahream Bula – the joint venture was guilty of revisiting some of the old habits which have dogged them for the past few years in a 32-12 loss to the Raiders.

They’ll need to have that cleaned up before facing Craig Fitzgibbon’s men at Leichhardt Oval, after they punished the Bulldogs for similar shortcomings last week in an eventual 25-6 win, which was led by a standout performance from halfback Nicho Hynes.

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They’ll need to have that cleaned up before facing Craig Fitzgibbon’s men at Leichhardt Oval, after they punished the Bulldogs for similar shortcomings last week in an eventual 25-6 win, which was led by a standout performance from halfback Nicho Hynes.

It remains to be seen what Marshall will do with his halves combination after he took Jayden Sullivan out of the game in favour of Aidan Sezer after 56 minutes in Round 2, while star recruit Justin Olam (knee) is likely still another week away from being ready to go.

The Sharks are set to receive two huge boosts in the forward pack with Royce Hunt expected to be OK after missing last week with illness and Braden Hamlin-Uele closing in on a return from a knee injury.

The Wests Tigers have a poor record against the Sharks of late and have tasted victory just once in their last 11 games against them, while Cronulla have won in each of their two most recent visits to this week’s venue.

remains to be seen what Marshall will do with his halves combination after he took Jayden Sullivan out of the game in favour of Aidan Sezer after 56 minutes in Round 2, while star recruit Justin Olam (knee) is likely still another week away from being ready to go.

The Sharks are set to receive two huge boosts in the forward pack with Royce Hunt expected to be OK after missing last week with illness and Braden Hamlin-Uele closing in on a return from a knee injury.

The Wests Tigers have a poor record against the Sharks of late and have tasted victory just once in their last 11 games against them, while Cronulla have won in each of their two most recent visits to this week’s venue.