NRL 2022: Wests Tigers captain James Tamou supports coach Michael Maguire despite winless start
Another shattering loss has heaped pressure on Wests Tigers coach Michael Maguire, but he has strong player support.
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Tigers co-captain James Tamou has given the ultimate compliment to Michael Maguire, insisting his long-suffering coach would love nothing more than to strap on the boots and help turn the club’s season around on the paddock with his men if he could.
After a coach-killing 8-6 loss to the Titans, decided in the final minute by a try to Gold Coast playmaker AJ Brimson, an emotive Tamou said the players were right behind the 2014 premiership-winning mentor and his methods to get the Tigers firing.
Wests defended like demons against the Titans in a club record equalling seventh consecutive defeat, stretching back to the final three rounds of 2021.
Tamou said Maguire, a former Canberra and Adelaide player himself, was not to blame for the side‘s failures and the fire in his belly to get the Tigers winning again continued to inspire.
“I tell you what, if Madge could, he would strap up and get out there with you. That is how he feels about it,” Tamou said.
“Around everything he talks about, you can feel the passion and you want to play for him. He would want nothing more than to be out there. Every day at training you are looking at him and you hear him speak, and it gets you up. It really does.
“The effort we displayed tonight shows that, but again, near enough isn‘t good enough.”
Suspended Tigers star Jackson Hastings dipped into his own pocket to fly to the Gold Coast to be by his coach’s side in the box and provide encouragement to his teammates, a move that inspired Tamou.
“We shed blood, sweat and tears together. That goes to show what (Hastings) brings to the club and what he means to us. For him to do that and just be there … it shows where we are as a club,” Tamou said.
“The footy gods praise effort and the boys put a lot of effort in. I am proud of them.”
Tamou is drawing on his own experience in 2015 to retain belief the Tigers can still challenge for the title.
He was an integral member of the Cowboys premiership-winning side that lost their opening three games of the season before a Johnathan Thurston field goal in golden point against the Storm got them on the board in round 4. They never looked back and Tamou believes the Tigers can also rebound and go on a run to the finals.
“Absolutely, that’s what I feel this team is,” he said.
“You can feel everyone wants that type of success. Everyone is on the same page.
“The first three games (of 2015) we were going ‘what’s going on?’ Then we just clicked.”
Maguire revealed the Tigers were denied a request to fly injured co-captain Adam Doueihi to the Gold Coast to be with the team by club management but said there were plenty of other injured players also putting their hands up.
“All the other players were keen to come up, but we have got training and various other things they need to tick off down there because they are working hard to get themselves back and be a part of the team. All the players are showing what Jacko showed,” Maguire said.
“We were able to achieve what we were after. Jacko got up here and Adam is working hard to get himself back. He was back there training and doing what he needed to.”
Originally published as NRL 2022: Wests Tigers captain James Tamou supports coach Michael Maguire despite winless start
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