Balmain legend Paul Sironen says Chris Lawrence has earned right to be Wests Tigers’ sole on-field captain
WESTS Tigers will have five co-captains this season, but club legend Paul Sironen believes veteran backrower Chris Lawrence deserves to be the team’s sole on-field leader.
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THE Wests Tigers will have five co-captains this season, but club legend Paul Sironen believes veteran back-rower Chris Lawrence deserves to be the team’s sole on-field leader.
The Tigers shocked the NRL world on Wednesday when coach Ivan Cleary named a leadership group for 2018.
Lawrence will be joined by Elijah Taylor and recruits Josh Reynolds, Russell Packer and Benji Marshall.
Sironen respects Cleary’s decision to select a leadership group, but says Lawrence should be the on-field captain.
“I’d like to think Chris has earned that right,” said Sironen, who played 12 seasons with Balmain and represented NSW and Australia.
“He has been in the leadership group for a few years now and he has grown from a 17-year-old bloke that has come through the development system at the Magpies and now he is a Wests Tiger.
“The poor bugger has battled some injuries, but if he is playing 80 minutes on the edge every week, then he is probably the guy I’d go with.
“He is level headed and he would go well as the on-field leader.
“Ivan has picked a leadership group, but you’ll need one bloke to stick their hand up and be the overall leader — the Tigers will certainly need that.”
Sironen believes the Tigers’ leadership group can work, especially with an experienced player like Benji Marshall on board.
In the end, though, he says one player must take charge.
“The referee will only talk to one guy,” he said.
“But I think someone like Benji is very personable and he’ll do a lot of things off the field with the sponsors.
“We’ve had co-captains in rugby league in the past and it has grown from that to leadership groups, which most clubs have had for a few years now.
“I guess Ivan has taken it one step further and decided these blokes are going to be our leaders, so it will be interesting to see how it goes.”