Under-pressure Wests Tigers coach Michael Maguire insists his team's season is still alive despite slumping to their ninth defeat in the opening 12 rounds.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Tigers endured their worst half of the year on Saturday, falling from 18-12 up against South Sydney to 44-18 losers as they let in six straight tries.
After showing promise in the first half in attack, the Tigers were unable to rebound after an early first-half call went against them and put them on the back foot.
Ultimately it epitomised the first half of the Tigers' season, as both Maguire and captain James Tamou conceded it felt like a case of a step back for every one forward.
Maguire remains one of the most under-pressure coaches in the NRL, now in his fourth season at Concord and with the club missing out on playing finals since 2005.
But the former Rabbitohs coach insisted the Tigers' season is not over, making reference to the club's only premiership-winning team of 2005 as part of his argument the club can turn things around.
"The season is still alive," Maguire insisted.
"You get a run and you can go back in time at this club where you get all your players back in.
"(Adam) Doueihi, (Alex) Twal, David Nofoaluma back in. You just have to have a passage of consecutive wins. I know it is in this team.
"We just have to play an 80 minute game. We did it last week and against Souths and Parramatta.
"If we win every game (we can play finals). And we roll up every week with the attitude to win every game."
Maguire's comments come after a Sydney Morning Herald report earlier this week claimed Tigers powerbrokers needed to see the team on 10 points by the end of round 13.
That figure is now impossible to reach, with the Tigers having a bye next week.
The club are set to get Doueihi back immediately after that, setting up a question of what Maguire does with halves Luke Brooks and Jackson Hastings.
Nofoaluma is already available for selection but has not been picked as he fights to meet club standards after a concussion, while Daine Laurie and Brent Naden at least showed good signs on Saturday.
"The boys are consistently trying to put 80 minutes of footy together. It is frustrating," Tamou said.
"We completely lost that game.
"Somewhere in the patches in the first half we played our game we wanted to play.
"In the second half we just weren't ourselves. We went away from what we spoke about all week and that is the difference at the moment."
Australian Associated Press
