Returning Wests Tigers winger Lote Tuqiri is expecting star five-eighth Benji Marshall to play in their NRL clash against South Sydney on Sunday.

Betting markets for the match at Allianz Stadium were suspended this week with speculation Marshall had succumbed to a series of head knocks in recent weeks and would be sidelined for the Rabbitohs game.

But that’s news to Tuqiri who is playing his first game of the season after having a wrist reconstruction in December.

“He trained yesterday and he trained again today … I don’t know. I don’t know where you get that from,” said Tuqiri on Thursday.

“From my point of view and the team’s point of view is he trained yesterday and he trained really well and we think he’s playing.”

Tuqiri admitted it’s been frustrating watching the Tigers, who have just one victory from four games in 2012.

“It hasn’t been easy sitting on the sidelines. We haven’t won as many games as we would have liked but hopefully I can make a bit of a difference. I’ll just go out there on Sunday and do my job and hopefully that helps,” he said.

“It’s a bit early to make conclusions but we’re getting into a time when we have to start putting some wins together.

“It’s been well-documented that we’ve done this in the last couple of years .. … It’s not a position that we haven’t been in before. We know how to get out of it. We’re all sticking tight and going about our jobs and doing the little things.”

AAP rj/a