NRL 2022: Adam Doueihi fights to help off-contract Tigers secure new deals

James Tamou is playing for his future, while Newcastle have lost a promising junior to Canberra. Read all about it in the latest from the NRL transfer market.

James Tamou and Pasami Saulo.

Adam Doueihi knows the Wests Tigers’ final 80 minutes of the season could save the NRL career of skipper James Tamou.

Tamou, a 304-game veteran, will take the field on Sunday, possibly for the last time, after having a contrary conduct charge downgraded for calling referee Ben Cummins “f---ing incompetent”.

“I know I’ll be doing everything to finish this year on a high, maybe help him get a contract for next year … we’ll do everything we can to help Jimmy (Tamou) out,” Doueihi said.

The playmaker is also aware Sunday’s clash against Canberra is about more than putting a dent in the Raiders’ finals hopes.

It’s a chance to leave an impression on potential suitors before Doueihi, along with Daine Laurie, Tyrone Peachey and Joe Ofahengaue hit the market on November 1.

Stream every game of every round of the 2022 NRL Telstra Premiership Season Live & Ad-Break Free During Play on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >

James Tamou could be playing his last game in the NRL on Sunday against the Raiders. Picture: Scott Gardiner/Getty Images

Doueihi’s halves partner Jock Madden is also uncontracted for 2023 and it’s believed Canterbury and Penrith will be watching closely.

“People remember the last game you play,” Doueihi said.

“We’re playing for a lot, I said to the boys there are a lot of players off contract … and me being a half and senior player at the club, I want to really nail the game plan … to give all the off-contract players and those departing a good game to finish on.

“The Raiders have a lot to play for but there will be nothing better than to finish a disappointing season with a win at Leichhardt and spoiling the Raiders party.”

Earlier this month, Melbourne mooted a loan deal for Doueihi that was rejected by the Tigers.

Before arriving at Concord from South Sydney in 2020, another powerhouse club, the Sydney Roosters, offered Doueihi a two-year contract that he turned down to join the Tigers.

Doueihi is again expected to generate interest from rivals, but the 24-year old was tight-lipped when asked about his desire to test his value on the open market.

“I’m not in a rush to be honest, I have always said I would let my footy do the talking,” he said. “I have been focused on getting wins for the club so I have pushed that aside, I’m still on contract for next year and we’ll see what happens in the off-season.”

Adam Doueihi wants to finish the season with a win against the Raiders. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

The Tigers’ forgettable season hit a new low at the hands of the Roosters after a 72-6 drubbing in round 23.

That match also produced a regrettable moment for the normally stoic Doueihi after he ‘bit back’ at a disgruntled fan in the crowd at the SCG.

“I had my red head on, it was probably me being angry at the whole world so any little comment, or if anyone was going to say something … it was nothing personal towards me. It was a comment about the club,” Doueihi said.

“Looking back on it, I probably should have copped it on the chin but I sort of bit back and exchanged some words, I don’t remember exactly, it was in the heat of the moment.”

Only a win and a 70-plus point turnaround against Canberra, who are looking to seal a finals berth, can save the Tigers from collecting the joint-venture’s first wooden spoon.

“We’re not oblivious, it’s coming our way unless a miracle happens on the weekend ... we are going to get it,” Doueihi said. “It’s something I never wanted near my name.

“It caps off a disappointing season as a club. We’ve had a lot of distractions but that doesn’t excuse our performances, they have been below average, we understand that.”

Doueihi is confident a new-look coaching staff led by premiership winners Tim Sheens, Benji Marshall and Robbie Farah can “turn things around in a big way” next season.

“All three know what success looks like, we have a few boys at the club that don’t really know what success looks like,” he said. “They will help us on the path of what needs to be done at training and off the field to prepare to win every weekend.

“We’ve made good signings in Isaiah Papali’i and Api Koroisau, who will bring some leadership and who knows on-field success.”

Raiders snap up talented Knight

-David Riccio

The Raiders are poised to lose Adam Elliott to Newcastle and now Canberra have retaliated by stealing one of the Knights best local juniors.

Identifying a logjam of NRL talent within the Knights pack, Canberra has agreed to terms on a contract with promising prop Pasami Saulo for the next two seasons.

With 26 games to his name since making his NRL debut in 2018, Saulo has enjoyed his best season to date with 10-games for the Knights this year. The 190cm prop has been named on the Knights bench to face Cronulla at Newcastle on Sunday.

Saulo, a former Australian Schoolboy from Belmont, was off-contract at the end of this season. But with a host of Knights forwards ahead of him including, Daniel and Jacob Saifiti, David Klemmer, Tyson Frizell and in 2023, Jack Hetherington and Elliott, Saulo is backing himself to play regular first grade at the Raiders.

Pasami Saulo will join the Raiders next season. Picture: Matt King/Getty Images

Graham: Reynolds can be Bulldogs’ Benji

-David Riccio

Former Canterbury captain James Graham believes Josh Reynolds’ impact on the Bulldogs could mirror the influence of what Benji Marshall did for South Sydney last year.

Marshall’s experience and utility factor helped propel the Rabbitohs to last year’s grand final.

Reynolds is on the verge of signing a $1000 train-and-trial contract with Canterbury after incoming coach Cameron Ciraldo ticked-off on the 33-year-old’s return to Belmore.

In what is the rookie Bulldogs coach’s first signing, Reynolds, 33, has been offered a three-month train and trial contract.

The 12-week deal to train with the Bulldogs from November 1 is underwritten with no guarantees for Reynolds other than to prove he is worth including within the club’s 30-man squad on a full-time contract for the 2023 season.

Josh Reynolds is set to return to Belmore on a bargain deal.

The paltry figure will mean that Reynolds is the lowest-paid player in the Bulldogs’ NRL squad, and valued at even less than that of several untried teenagers currently contracted to the club.

Ciraldo views the former NSW State of Origin five-eighth as a potential bench utility who will bring energy and Bulldogs DNA to the 2023 pre-season.

Graham declared the offer for Reynolds as a “no-brainer”.

“The fact that he has to earn the trust of the coach (Ciraldo) and everyone at the club speaks volumes,’’ Graham said.

“It’s easy to be the romantic and think, this guy loves the club and remember him for what he used to be, but this is a smart move from the club.

“I think it will get the best out of Josh Reynolds. It will show just how determined he is.

“I don’t want to look too far ahead, but I can see Josh playing a similar role to Benji Marshall at South Sydney.

Cameron Ciraldo takes over as Bulldogs coach in 2023.

“With (Matt) Burton in the halves and Origin beckoning, Josh can come on and fill in roles in the halves, or hooker for Reed Mahoney, I can certainly envisage a Benji Marshall-type role.

“Also, what we see on the field, as far as the 80-minutes of play, is not a true representation of what Josh will bring to the team.

“He will bring so much away from the field that people wouldn’t recognise.’’

Reynolds is also eager to work with the club’s commercial team and in a mentoring role in junior development.

Widely regarded as a Bulldogs favourite son, Reynolds played 138 games for Canterbury between 2011 and 2017, before moving to the Wests Tigers on a massive three-year deal.

Benji Marshall played a key mentoring role during his stint at Souths. Picture: Annette Dew

Reynolds has spent the past two seasons with Hull FC in the UK Super League, where he scored seven tries in 25-games.

Bulldogs GM manager Phil Gould met with Reynolds and his agent George Mimis on Sunday.

Gould needed approval from Ciraldo to push ahead with the deal, which The Daily Telegraph can reveal has been secured.

Reynolds had made no secret of his burning desire to finish his NRL career at Belmore, where he was famously chaired from the ground in his final game for Canterbury in 2017.

“I would 100 per cent love to go there. I’ve always said that I’d love to finish (my career) there,’’ Reynolds said on the Big Sports Breakfast last month.

Originally published as NRL 2022: Adam Doueihi fights to help off-contract Tigers secure new deals