20 of the Best: Wests Tigers (Balmain Tigers/Western Suburbs Magpies)

As we wait for season 2011 to get underway, the Making The Nut team will take a look back over the last 20 years to name the 20 best players at all sixteen teams. Merged teams will take account of both clubs pre-merger and the only rule is that a player must have played at least three years post-1990. A player's time at the club is the only time that is taken into account.

Here, Matt Fisk breaks down his beloved Wests Tigers and its predecessors.

20 .Pat Richards

Although only spending two seasons at Concord, Richards clearly deserves to round out this list. He arrived at the Tigers after four years at the Eels and his height and pace soon made a positive impact. He is best remembered for a week of drama when an ankle injury threatened to rule him out of the 2005 grand final. However he made it on to the paddock and it culminated with arguably the greatest grand final try in premiership history. After Brett Hodgson fielded possession on his own tryline, the ball moved to Benji Marshall who tore down the turf at the Olympic Stadium before finding Richards with an immaculate flick pass who, in turn, fended off Rod Jensen to score. The big winger signed a two-year contract with Wigan in June of that same year and despite some last-minute wrangling to have him stay in Australia, Richards was gone from the Tigers for good. Since his move to England Richards has developed his goalkicking to the point where he has twice topped the Super League point scorers list and picked up the coveted Man of Steel in 2010. He also had a very successful World Cup tournament with Ireland in 2008, scoring 22 of his side’s 34 points in their famous victory over Samoa.

19. Darren Senter

Senter was never afforded any representative honours greater than his City Origin jerseys but he had a long and productive career in rugby league. Captain of Balmain in 1999, Senter was ever-reliable during the formative years of the Wests Tigers joint venture and captained them proudly until his retirement in 2004. However he is not on this list purely because of his captaincy (McCracken and Buckets O’Neill have both been overlooked); Senter was a wily and competitive hooker/backrower that played at 100% every week.

18. Lote Tuqiri

Lote is a controversial selection considering he is only into his second season with the Wests Tigers but Tuqiri almost always delivers on the field and has the unique ability to get the turnstiles clicking over. After a distinguished career at both the Broncos and the ARU, Tuqiri surprised even his biggest fans by scoring 18 tries in the 2010 season and winning back his Kangaroos jersey. Not many wingers in the past 20 years would be a match for Lote in his current form, let alone when he was in his prime.

17. Keith Galloway

Keith is a popular front rower who remains on the cusp of representative selection. Touted as a future star from his early days in the 2002 Australian Schoolboys, Keith’s development as a front row forward has followed the age old comparison to fine wine. He certainly is getting better with age and is now clearly regarded by Tim Sheens, Tigers team mates and fans as the most important prop in the club. Contracted to the club until 2013, big Keith may well become a NSW Blue in the not-too-distant future.

16. Stephen Kearney

Only true rugby league trainspotters would know that Kearney started his career at the Magpies in the early 90s. A vital cog in the 1992 winning Presidents Cup grand final side (the last premiership of any kind by Western Suburbs or Balmain), Kearney was touted as a natural leader almost immediately. He captained his country at the age of 21 and the newly formed Auckland Warriors made him their target for their inaugural season in 1995. A great talent and a good advertisement for rugby league. Wests were worse-off for losing him at the end of 1994.

15. John Skandalis

“Skando” was a great clubman through and through. From the night he made his debut against Penrith (May 1996) in one of the most spiteful clashes ever seen at Campbelltown Sports Ground, Skandalis never took a backward step. Many fans lamented the fact he was consistently overlooked for Origin selection but even the player himself would admit he was not the most talented or skilful prop to ever play the game. He helped ease Wests Tigers’ salary cap pressures by heading to Huddersfield in 2007 and remarkably made himself available to assist the club in 2009 and 2010 when injuries struck. Fittingly, he will be remembered in the history books as the first tryscorer for the joint venture.

14. Todd Payten

The first 8 years of Todd’s career was truly a roller coaster ride. Easing his way into the Canberra Raiders’ top grade in 1996 he was playing finals football with monotonous regularity and higher representative honours were considered a formality. However he fell out of favour in Canberra, had a brief pitstop at Bondi and by 2004 he was granted a last-chance lifeline at the Wests Tigers. In the ensuing seven years he has become one of the most important leaders in the club and is now an NRL veteran with almost 250 games under his belt. In recent seasons he has learnt to curb his natural ball skills and increased his focus on the more traditional roles of a prop forward. The ability to keep his opponents in two minds has since led many coaches to describe him as one of the toughest forwards to defend against.

13. Chris Heighington

Widely regarded as one of the most popular players in the Wests Tigers squad, Chris has been one of the best performed players each and every year at the club since he arrived in 2003. A tough and mobile backrower with a definite larrikin streak in him, Heighington is one of those players everyone wants in their side. In a show of confidence he has declined the opportunity to represent England in order to continue his quest for a Blues jersey. The Central Coast Bears have sounded out the Umina junior for their inaugural season but it looks like Heighington will wear the Tigers jersey until he hangs up his boots.

12. Chris Lawrence

If Jason Taylor paved the way for Campbelltown juniors to embrace the Magpies and Tigers, then Chris Lawrence is certainly taking advantage of the pathway. Just like the McGuiness boys, John Skandalis and Brett Hodgson, Lawrence is a local boy who takes pride his club. He is lightning fast, runs amazingly accurate lines and treats his body with the respect of a young Wayne Pearce. At Lang Park in 2006, Lawrence was the youngest Tiger to ever debut when he scored with almost his first touch of the game and in doing so, showed Karmichael Hunt a clean pair of heels. Since then he has scored at a rate of better than one try every two matches and even secured a try in his Test debut in Auckland last year. Selection in that match was a fine reward for an impressive 2010 season and if only the selectors picked him in the final over Willie Tonga, the Kangaroos may still be Four Nations champions. Still only 22, Lawrence has almost played 100 matches and is sure to be a regular fixture in the Tigers side for years to come. After working on several defensive lapses that plagued the start of his career, Lawrence is also a big chance of adding to his representative caps in the not-too-distant future. This left centre is deadly and definitely a chance of becoming a Tigers great.

11. Jason Taylor

Believe it or not, this disgraced coach and rowdy cricket fan also played rugby league for the Western Suburbs Magpies. One of the first local juniors to emerge from the Campbelltown region, Taylor was a standout at St Greg’s College in the 1989 Commonwealth Bank Cup and made his debut for the Magpies in the following season. After four years at a largely struggling club, Taylor chased the dollars being thrown around by North Sydney, the Northern Eagles and finally Parramatta. Despite failing to credit Wests for any of his development, Taylor deserves a spot on this list as he led the way for future Campbelltown juniors to embrace the Magpies.  He was the architect behind the players BBQ that led to Peter Louis’ sacking from North Sydney in 1999 and it was fitting of his character that he could not handle being the coach on the end of similar treatment by Souths in 2009. Goalkicking was his strength and he did have very good vision, even at a young age. Unfortunately he was blessed with neither size nor speed and his lack of loyalty in his 276-match career cost him any chance of a lasting legacy in the game.

10. Scott Prince

Prince was the 2005 Wests Tigers premiership captain and Clive Churchill Medallist. For that reason he has made this list but Prince is not remembered fondly by the Tigers faithful. After a turbulent career that threatened to fall off the rails on numerous occasions, Tim Sheens and the Tigers threw Prince a lifeline in 2004. The move was mutually beneficial for all parties and while Hodgson and Marshall supplied the brilliance in 2005, Scott Prince’s controlling kicking game was equally as effective. He turned his back on the club only a year after the premiership success and has never reached any great heights since.

9. Paul Langmack

Langers burst onto the scene in the mid-1980s as a workaholic backrower and achieved plenty of success with the Bulldogs. In later years he moved to the Magpies and refined his game to arguably become the best ball-playing forward of the 1990s. Arriving at Campbelltown in 1991, Langmack immediately impressed Magpie fans when the success-plagued club competed in successive finals series. He also led the side to the 1996 finals as captain and in between, picked up the 1992 Rugby League Week player of the year award. Despite not appealing to representative selectors for much of his career, Langmack is one of the select few who have played 300+ first grade games and 137 of those were with the mighty Maggies. Alongside Andrew Leeds, Langmack stands as the premier Magpie of the 1990s.

8. Ben Elias

Despite his ability to polarise opinions, Benny Elias was a great rugby league hooker. Elias was part of the great Balmain pack of the 1980s that also included Wayne Pearce, Steve Roach and Paul Sironen but like Sirro, he was also one of the game’s best players of the 1990s. He made his debut in 1982 and retired in 1994 after playing 234 first grade games but not before he turned the whole of Queensland (and most of NSW) against him. The Holy Cross junior was the ultimate competitor whose duels with Mario Fenech, the Walters brothers and even Wally Lewis were legendary. Despite never representing Australia again after 1990, Elias was a named man of the match three separate times in State of Origin (1990, 1992 and 1994). He also captained the Blues six times in his career and who will ever forget the image of a blood-soaked Backdoor Benny being embraced by his mum after the 1992 victory in Sydney? It would not surprise me if Robbie Farah based his game on that of Benny’s as Elias’ running game and vision were a pre-cursor to that of the modern-day dummy half.

7. Paul Sironen

Paul Sironen was one of the great rugby league second rowers and would have played at the highest level in any era. An absolute giant of a man, Sirro stood at almost two metres tall but his try in the 1989 grand final proved he was not short of pace. After playing college football in the USA, the former policeman joined the Balmain Tigers in 1986 and over the next 13 seasons played 246 games in total. Sironen also represented NSW 14 times, played 21 Tests for the Kangaroos and also captained the Tigers for the 1995 season.  One of the most feared forwards in the past 20 years, Sirro will not be forgotten in a hurry.

6. Tim Brasher

Tiger Tim burst onto the scene in the late 1980s as a fresh-faced Balmain junior and after playing as a winger or centre early in his career was soon regarded as the game’s leading custodian. In his 14-year career, Brasher was a mainstay of the NSW Origin side and played 16 Tests for Australia, including the 1995 World Cup final in which he scored a try. While initially coming into the top grade as a player with pace and flair, Brasher’s support play and defence developed over the years  to the point where he was one of the game’s stars in the mid-1990s. While he finished his career with stints at North Queensland and South Sydney, Brasher will always be regarded as a Tiger given that he played 185 of his 244 games at the club. He is clearly the last of the great local juniors to play for the Balmain Tigers prior to the 2000 merger.

5. Gareth Ellis

Both the Balmain Tigers and Wests Magpies have a proud tradition of importing quality English stars. The likes of Ellery Hanley, Garry Schofield, Lee Crooks and Shaun Edwards are not eligible for this list but even if they were, Gareth Ellis would run a close second to Hanley as the best Englishmen to ever ply his trade down under.  It certainly is a big call considering the quality of his countrymen over the years, but Ellis is a wonderful backrower. If Warren McDonnell is not remembered for anything else, he should be remembered as the recruitment manager who signed the highly-rated but relatively unknown (in this part of the world) backrower for the 2009 season. Since he made his NRL debut, Ellis has impressed all good judges of the game with his bone-shattering defence and strong running lines developed as a wiry centre back in his Wakefield Trinity days. He has been the Wests Tigers player of the year in both seasons at the club and has extended his contract until the end of the 2013 season. Given the dearth of quality players in England, it is no mean feat that it is widely accepted that Gareth would be a walk-up start into the Australian team if he was fortunate enough to have been born here. Sir Gareth of Ellis is a true warrior that would have excelled in any era of rugby league.

4. Robbie Farah

As the current club captain and on the verge of cementing a spot in the NSW and Australian teams, Farah conceivably is in the infancy of what could become a decorated career. As a brash Canterbury Bulldogs junior, 18-year old Robbie Farah made the 2002 Lebanese side and went on to play seven first grade matches for the Tigers over the 2003-2004 seasons. He really hit the big time in 2005 and in the ensuing seasons has become one of the leading rakes in the game. A handy defender and ball distributor with a clever kicking game, Farah’s strength is his ability to play the game at his pace as well as spotting flaws in the opposition’s defensive line. He has failed to deliver in his infrequent representative appearances but this disappointing pattern looks set to end in 2011 after his impressive last-start for the Kangaroos in the 2010 Four Nations. Farah has come close to winning the Dally M award on two separate occasions only to be pipped by a solitary point. Expect the Tigers captain to once again challenge for more individual, representative and team honours in the next few years.

3. Brett Hodgson

It’s fitting that Hodgson enters this list on the tail of Andrew Leeds. He did the same thing at the Magpies in 1997 and certainly did a good job of learning his craft from one of the best. While he didn’t experience many victories in his first three years of top grade rugby league, Hodgson did stand out as a courageous and crafty fullback with plenty of pace to burn. After moving to the Eels in 2000 and making a grand final and Origin series, Hodgson found himself back with the Tigers in 2004. He was awarded the Dally M fullback of the year in 2005 and was the league’s top pointscorer. Consistent and brave performances made him the perfect Tigers captain and he was a regular favourite amongst fans and teammates alike. Hodgson had the ability to perform as a classic fullback but his ability to chime in at first receiver was a valuable string to his bow. After playing the last of his 224 first grade matches in 2008, Hodgson moved to the Old Dart and picked up the Super League’s Man of Steel award in 2009.

2. Andrew Leeds

Andrew Leeds was one of the greatest Magpies to lace on a boot. After a respectable 14-Test career with the Wallabies he spent four modest seasons at Parramatta and Penrith before finding his way to Campbelltown in 1993. For the next seven years he was undoubtedly the best player in the black and white. It was a simpler time, when Fox Sports didn’t broadcast every match of the week and as a result his performances were largely ignored by the wider rugby league community. His positional play and line running were second to none, he was an accomplished goal-kicker and his last ditch defence was something to behold. “Jumper” was a true student of the game and despite his rather impressive academic accomplishments off the field, he still managed to appeal to team mates from all walks of life. It comes as no surprise to those that followed his football career that he continues to add value to the Wests Tigers in his role as physio and rehab manager. A more determined and classic fullback I’m yet to see (and I saw a lot of Garry Jack). The true testament to his ability is that he has only been pipped in this list by a Golden Boot winner but has still beaten home two Man of Steel recipients, a Clive Churchill medallist and a two-time Dally M runner-up.

1. Benji Marshall

Many good judges of rugby league have recently anointed Benji as the game’s best player. As we know, this title can be passed on to the next candidate rather quickly but it is a deserved honour and one that I do not expect Marshall to relinquish for several seasons yet. The mere fact that a boy with absolutely no rugby league experience less than 10 years ago, has now developed into the most exciting player ever to lace on a boot for the Magpies, Balmain Tigers or Wests Tigers is remarkable. Originally a touch footballer with only a passing interest in the greatest game of all, Marshall’s talents were spotted and he was quickly offered a scholarship at Keebra Park High. Safely in the Tigers den, Marshall was unveiled against a weakened Knights outfit at Campbelltown in 2003 and immediately made the public sit back and take notice. He stood out in the Tigers’ 2004 World Sevens victory and showed glimpses of class in his first grade appearances later that year. It was in 2005 that Marshall truly lit up the NRL and the Tigers finally had a marquee player that fans from Leichhardt, Ashfield, Campbelltown and Concord could all call their own. The 2006-2008 years were tough for Benji due to long stretches on the sideline through injury; however his biggest fan, coach Sheens, never once wavered in his support. As Sheens predicted all along, it turned around, and 2009 was the year Benji matured as a footballer. Injury-free and confident, Marshall began to take more of a leadership role and was clearly showing pride in leading his side around the paddock. In 2010 he continued this rich vein of form in which he went within a whisker of a grand final appearance, led the Kiwis to a Four Nations crown and in doing so, did not miss a game all season. Benji is a leader, he is capable of playing off the cuff or following a gameplan to the letter, he can kick goals and field goals, he can score tries on his own or set up his support players. In short, he is the ultimate rugby league playmaker and has proved himself at the highest level. He currently holds the Golden Boot, he has won a premiership, a World Cup and captained his country to an improbable Four Nations victory. All this at the age of 26 and he is only getting better.

 

Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images AsiaPac