Latest news with #WestsTigers
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
‘Just dumb': NRL world turns on star Tiger Jarome Luai
Life without Lachlan Galvin has not started well for Jarome Luai and the Wests Tigers. Teenage five-eighth Galvin finally got his wish and joined the Bulldogs on Friday, ending a drawn out saga as coach Benji Marshall injected youngster Heath Mason into his starting line-up to face North Queensland in Townsville. Marshall would have expected a strong showing from Luai, but his captain let himself and the side down with a series of infringements that led to 10 minutes in the bin in just the 12th minute of the match. In a horrendous display of ill discipline, it began with big Royce Hunt holding on for too long just outside his own try line and gifting the Cowboys another set. Enter Jarome Luai. In what could only be a brain explosion, or a misguided attempt to give his teammates a chance to reset their line, Luai twice held on for far too long in consecutive tackles, testing the patience of referee Gerard Sutton. The first may have had a little extra feeling when he clung onto former Tiger John Bateman, giving North Queensland yet another set. Sutton could be heard barking at Luai, but he didn't listen as he did it again on the next tackle on Cowboy Sam McIntyre. 'Luai again, oh, trouble. Gone. Luai is out of here for 10 minutes,' Dan Ginnane said on Fox League. Sutton said to Luai: 'That's three rucks, back to back to back, in the same set of possession. 'It's a mandatory sin bin. You had two six mores, then that, it doesn't matter.' Adding to the Tigers' woes, Api Koroisau was also placed on report for an infringement during the same Cowboys set. With the one-man advantage, North Queensland quickly scored tries through Bateman and Jaxon Purdue to break the game open. Tigers fans were absolutely livid with their skipper. 'Luai is supposed to be our captain but is letting us down with pathetic leadership. Really tough to watch,' was one comment on X. 'Luai showing his leadership qualities yet again,' said another sarcastically. 'Wests fans try tell us Luai is better than Galvin? The guy that crabs sideways all game, the guy with 1 try assist all season, the guy that gets binned for stupid continued ruck infringements letting his team down,' tweeted another. 'Well that's just idiotic from Luai there … could see that sin bin coming from a mile away,' wrote a fourth. A fifth claimed: 'Jarome Luai deserved to go there. It's so unnecessary for giving away a penalty as stupid as that and he then doubled down on it.' Other comments labelled Luai 'brain dead', 'just dumb' and he was accused of 'losing the plot'. One fan even had a cheeky dig at the club's contract drama, tweeting: 'Galvin wouldn't have done that.' The home side took a comfortable 18-6 lead into halftime, with Adam Doueihi also spending 10 minutes in the bin late in the first half as the Tigers fell apart. Starford To'a had given the visitors a little hope with a try in the 25th minute, but the Cowboys finished the half well on top. 'That will be all she wrote for the first half,' Ginnane said. 'Boy the Tigers make it hard for themselves.' Speaking during the break, Fox League's Yvonne Sampson said: 'Benji Marshall will be steaming on the discipline. 'It has spoiled any of the Wests Tigers' sense of adventure in Townsville so far. 'Jarome Luai, the sin bin, started off a chain reaction that really went in the Cowboys' favour.'
News.com.au
3 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
‘Thrilled' Canterbury Bulldogs reply to Tigers' cold Lachlan Galvin act
The Wests Tigers have finally confirmed Lachlan Galvin's departure, releasing a brief, terse statement declaring his move to 'another NRL club', while the Bulldogs have also responded. In a saga that dragged on for weeks, the 19-year-old had been angling for a move away from Concord Oval, with the Bulldogs emerging as his destination over the past week. While the move was widely accepted, and Galvin was snapped in Bulldogs gear for the first time on Friday, it had yet to be officially stamped by either club. But just after 5pm AEST on Friday, the Tigers confirmed the news in a three-line, 56-word statement. 'Wests Tigers and Lachlan Galvin have mutually agreed to an immediate conclusion of his playing contract,' the statement read. It then added a quote from Tigers chief executive Shane Richardson and Galvin. 'We wish Lachlan all the best with another NRL Club,' Richardson said. Galvin added: 'I am grateful to the Wests Tigers Board and Management for granting my early release. I wish the playing group success in the future.' The Bulldogs then finally made their own public move, posting a video of Galvin wearing their colours and juggling a footy before signing a camera screen. In a curious move, they coupled the video with Eminem's smash hit, The Real Slim Shady. The Canterbury club was much more effusive in a statement then posted to its official website at 7.30pm on Friday. 'The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are pleased to announce the signing of Lachlan Galvin, effective immediately,' it read. 'The 19-year-old joins the club on a deal that secures him until the end of 2028. 'A talented playmaker, Galvin has starred on the junior representative stage. 'He was a member of the 2022 Harold Matthews Cup title-winning Western Suburbs side before guiding Westfield Sports High to victory in the National Schoolboys Cup in 2023 under Bulldogs assistant coach Luke Vella. 'He was also named as Captain of the Australian Schoolboys team that same year. 'Galvin arrives to Belmore with 31 NRL games under his belt since making his first-grade debut in 2024 and has notched up a total of 24 try assists, while also averaging over 120 running metres per game. 'The club is thrilled to welcome Lachlan to the Bulldogs family.' One of Galvin's final moves in a Tigers jumper was dropping the ball over the tryline late in the club's round 11 loss to South Sydney. The Tigers had a bye last week and Galvin wasn't selected for this week's clash with the Cowboys. Over the course of this ordeal, Richardson had previously insisted Galvin would be seeing out his contract, which ran until the end of 2026. The highly rated young half sparked the furore when it emerged he had turned down a five-year, $6 million extension from the joint-venture club. Amid allegations of social media bullying from some of his teammates, Galvin was dropped by coach Benji Marshall last month before returning to the team. In an ugly saga, Bulldogs supremo Phil Gould found himself in the spotlight after he was accused of deliberately misleading fans over Galvin. The relationship between Galvin and the Tigers quickly soured and now the youngster has got his wish, despite taking a significant pay cut. Galvin's move was all but sealed earlier on Friday after one punter snapped a video of him training in blue and white. The video, which was posted by X user @BecharaRob, showed Galvin standing on the field at Belmore Sports Ground with a Bulldogs top on. Galvin has reportedly agreed to a salary with the Dogs that averages out to $750,000 per season, with club confirming the 19-year-old is contracted until the end of 2028. It had been reported Galvin's release from his current Tigers contract hinged on a non-disparagement clause, which would legally stop him from talking about his exit. The Bulldogs were said to be on board with that stipulation, along with the $175,000 release fee needed to secure his services for this season. It is not the first time the Bulldogs have had key signing news spoiled, with a photo of second rower Viliame Kikau in team colours alongside former coach Trent Barrett and general manager Phil Gould leaked onto social media in 2021. There had been speculation at the time Kikau was Belmore-bound from the Panthers, yet before the club or Fiji international had a chance to even announce the deal publicly, a grainy photo taken off a security camera found its way onto social media. It was later revealed that a Canterbury League Club employee was the culprit behind the photo. Meanwhile, Tigers coach Marshall fronted media on Friday for the first time since Galvin's move to the Bulldogs was widely reported, telling journalists he has 'noticed a real lift in energy' among his playing group. 'Obviously, (we've) got a few guys coming in that haven't played … who've brought a lot of energy to the team and then with our leaders they've been driving a really good preparation coming off the back of a bye,' Marshall said. 'We had a good reflection of where we went good and where we can improve in the first half of the season and we're looking to put those into place this weekend.' The Galvin saga has dominated headlines for over a month now, with Marshall admitting everyone is 'probably a little bit sick of talking about it'. When asked if he was disappointed to be losing the five-eighth, Marshall replied 'I don't know if disappointment's the word'. 'Look, at the same time we like our players we've got, we love the squad we've got,' he added. 'We're excited about some of the young players we've got coming through and for us, we want to try and make a mark on competition this year and with the squad we've got, we're confident we can do that but we've got to put it together this weekend.'
News.com.au
3 days ago
- General
- News.com.au
Galvin SPOTTED at Belmore in Dogs gear
RLG: Wests Tigers have officially announced the departure of Lachlan Galvin effective immediately as the youngster is spotted training at Belmore in Bulldogs' colours.
ABC News
3 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Galvin given early release from Wests Tigers NRL contract
The Wests Tigers have officially released Lachlan Galvin from his contract with the club. The Tigers released a brief statement late on Friday, saying they and Galvin had "mutually agreed to an immediate conclusion of his playing contract". Galvin, 19, is expected to sign with Canterbury. The announcement came on the same day footage emerged of Galvin wearing Bulldogs' training gear at the club's Belmore training base. "We wish Lachlan all the best with another NRL club," Tigers chief executive Shane Richardson said in a statement. In the same statement, Galvin said: "I am grateful to the Wests Tigers board and management for granting my early release. I wish the playing group success in the future."
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Footy fan armed with a phone exposes the NRL's biggest secret with Lachlan Galvin video - as league looks at punishing Bulldogs
A savvy footy fan has exposed the NRL 's biggest secret - wantaway Wests Tigers star Lachlan Galvin is now a Bulldog. It comes despite the joint venture club not yet releasing the five-eighth from Concord - or Canterbury formally announcing they have secured the youngster on a multi-year deal until 2028. Staunch Wests Tigers supporter Rob Bechara, who runs the popular Westslife podcast, uploaded the vision to X on Friday morning from outside Belmore Oval. Galvin already training with the Bulldogs even though no official release made public by the Tigers and no official announcement from the Bulldogs — Rob Bechara (@BecharaRob) May 30, 2025 Galvin can clearly be seen in blue and white Bulldogs training gear at the club's base in Sydney 's west. In the same clip, a number of Galvin's new teammates were doing stretching exercises, with the NRL ladder leaders enjoying the bye this weekend. Bechara added on X: 'Galvin already training with the Bulldogs even though no official release made public by the Tigers and no official announcement from the Bulldogs.' It also follows Canterbury's General Manager of Football Phil Gould being accused of courting Galvin while he was under contract at the Tigers. On Friday afternoon it emerged that the NRL is quizzing the Bulldogs over Galvin's presence at training, which could result in the club being hit with a heavy fine. Meanwhile, Benji Marshall says the energy is 'really positive' as the rebuilding NRL club finally forges into its post Galvin era. On Friday, head coach Marshall sidestepped questions on whether he was disappointed to lose Galvin, whose immediate move to Canterbury is finally expected to be confirmed this week. The teen star was excused from Tigers training for Round 13 and omitted from the team to face North Queensland on Saturday while the Bulldogs and Tigers finalise a transfer fee for his mid-season switch. Since then, Galvin has been subject to social media ridicule from teammates Jarome Luai and Sunia Turuva, served the Tigers with a legal letter over bullying claims, and dominated rugby league headlines during the State of Origin period. Understandably, Marshall is eager to move on from the soap opera. 'I guess everyone's probably a little bit sick of talking about it and it being reported,' the coach said. 'But we're just focused on the game. I know it's a cliched thing to say, but we have to be. 'It's been a great week at training. Everyone's looking forward to playing. 'We had a week off last week with the bye. The energy around the place has been really good, really positive.' Marshall shrugged off questions from the Townsville press as to whether he was disappointed to be losing the young gun around whom the Tigers had planned to continue their rebuild. 'I don't know if disappointment is the word,' Marshall said ahead of the clash with the Cowboys. 'We like the players we've got, we love the squad we've got, we're excited about some of the young players coming through for us. 'We want to try and make a mark on the competition this year. The squad we've got, we are confident we can do that.' Marshall has named Heath Mason to replace Galvin in the halves next to Luai.
