Wests Tigers coach Benji Marshall says his side "got what they deserved" after a gutsy 28-14 win over the Canterbury Bulldogs in torrential conditions at CommBank Stadium.
The victory, led by a masterclass from halfback Adam Doueihi, was one of the Tigers' most committed performances of the season and lifted them four-points clear of last-placed South Sydney.
"You always get what you deserve, and today, we deserved to win," said Marshall in his post-match press conference.
"We’ve got to figure out how we get those performances more often."
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The decision to shift Doueihi into the halves before kick-off proved a masterstroke, with the 26-year-old scoring a try and laying on another in a dominant first half.
While 20-year-old Latu Fainu has been touted as the club's long-term number seven, Marshall said the side needed Doueihi's composure in this key game.
"Latu is our long term seven prospect but for where we were at the moment, we needed a bit of experience there," he said.
Doueihi is off-contract at the end of the 2025 season and has attracted significant interest from rival Sydney clubs during the week.
"We made him an offer to stay, but what happens after that isn’t my job to figure out," said Marshall.
The match wasn't without controversy, with Bulldogs captain Stephen Crichton placed on report for a high-shot that was similar to a tackle made minutes earlier by Tigers forward Alex Seyfarth which resulted in him being sin-binned.
"I really don’t want to get in trouble to be honest," said Marshall.
"I just can’t understand why one is one thing and another is another thing, and now we lose Taylan for 11 days.
"You can’t use your 18th man unless he gets sin-binned, so we lose a player for the game."
The clash also saw sparks fly between former teammates Jarome Luai and Lachlan Galvin, though the Tigers five-eighth downplayed any talk of bad blood.
"That’s footy bro," Luai said.
"I’m a competitor and it doesn't really matter who’s on the other side. It’s brothers and opposition."
Marshall brushed off suggestions the contest was all about Galvin, who has dominated the headlines since his departure from Concord.
"People made it about him, but for us, it was never about him," he said.
With Doueihi firing and his young stars holding their nerve in the wet, Marshall now faces the challenge of finding the same energy as the Tigers push to finish their season on a positive note.