Wests Tigers are confident adversity will bring out the best in their injury-hit side as they cling to an NRL top eight spot.
Centre Blake Ayshford says the Tigers believe they can wrest back the momentum that has been a large part of their season, starting with Sunday’s match against South Sydney.
Wests suffered five successive losses before winning seven straight. Three losses then followed before a win over Penrith, then last weekends’s loss to North Queensland.
Sitting in eighth spot at the beginning of round 21, the Tigers have a battered roster but Ayshford remains upbeat.
“The same thing happened last year,” Ayshford said.
“Chris Lawrence and Lote Tuqiri were injured and we stood up and went on a run and won a lot of games in a row and made the semis.
“I think this team plays better when we have a bit of adversity facing us. If we can win games while those guys are out, it will be a statement and we will be in a position to make a charge at the finals and make an impact when we get there.”
Lawrence, Tim Moltzen, Curtis Sironen, Ben Murdoch-Masila have joined Keith Galloway, Tuqiri and James Tedesco on the sidelines as the Tigers face a desperate bid to keep their season alive.
On Sunday at ANZ Stadium they face an in-form South Sydney side minus suspended superstar Greg Inglis but nonetheless closing in on their best regular season finish since 1989.
“They have lost a couple of players too, and we still owe them for earlier in the year when we lead by 10 points or so and they came back and beat us in golden point,” Ayshford said.
“They are in the top four and that is where we want to be so these are the sort of games we need to win if we want to do that.”