If the Wests Tigers want a Premiership, Lachie Galvin should stay in reserve grade

Rugby League is a brutal game. 

You could rightly argue that it's one of the most brutal sports in the world. Yet, unlike disciplines such as the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), the Martial Arts themselves and Boxing, in the 13-a-side code, you have other teammates to rely on and, importantly, other teammates to support you, and you, them.

You need to be able to rely on your teammates.

It is very hard to hide on a rugby league field. If you have a weakness, it tends to get exposed quickly, and, in the high stakes of the NRL, these errors get highlighted far quicker than if you play local A grade due to the advent of detailed video analysis.

I have heard the game described as one that "knocks the bulls*** out of you."

That's why so many in rugby league struggle to comprehend someone in any dressing room, anywhere, pulling the pin on everyone else who shares that sacred sporting space when there is just short of two seasons remaining in which to share it.

This is reportedly what Lachie Galvin has done to his Wests Tigers teammates and his coach.

Said to have “no faith in his coach's ability,” Galvin apparently doesn't believe his game will develop in the way it needs to under Tigers' head coach, Benji Marshall, and therefore won't be looking for a new offer from his employers when his contract expires at the end of season 2026. 

Marshall has now responded by dropping him from the team.  

OK. Deep breath, Lee. Here goes - I'm going to put it all on the table.

Firstly, Lachie Galvin is 19 years old.  At the time of writing, he has played 27 games for the Tigers – the equivalent of one NRL season and change. He is an amazing attacking talent, and no less than commentator (and Canterbury Bulldogs General Manager) Phil Gould has said he is “obsessed” with him on a podcast in February.   

One side of the argument is that he is very much entitled to maximise his worth, while a significant portion of his career is still in front of him. I certainly don't begrudge anyone chasing their value.

The player market is going crazy.

Ten-year deals, million dollar deals, and players telling clubs they want to look elsewhere at a time the core business of playing and winning Premiership matches is the more immediate issue for others, is all the rage at the minute.

In that fertile business environment, one could argue that a red-hot talent such as Galvin is very entitled to try and ride that wave.  

There is also the argument regarding Benji's coaching. As it happens, in 2024, I did lots of podcasts called ‘The Analysis Sessions' and I was very critical of the style of play and level of coaching at Wests Tigers. It wasn't a surprise to me when one of the reasons cited for Galvin wanting out was this coaching.  

On the other side of the argument, let's start with Phil Gould's other comments on the issue, namely that Galvin “has a long way to go” and that “he is in the development phase” – words he uttered just this week on television. 

Whenever I have watched Lachie Galvin, there's plenty of missed tackles, and, without Jerome Luai by his side last season, he couldn't help steer the Tigers to enough victories to avoid the 2024 wooden spoon.  Harsh to say about a player who was then just 18 - under a coach whose tactics I have previously criticised - I know. But, by declaring his hand this early, and trying to get a big payday elsewhere, he is in the big boys' club now and will have something of a target on his back from some.

Let's also look at his career honours:

State of Origin appearances? Zero.
Australian Test appearances? Zero.
Premierships? Zero.
Winning NRL matches? Not many! 

Brad Fittler was 18 years and 114 days old when he made his State of Origin debut for New South Wales, and William Hopoate wasn't far off that milestone either. Ben Ikin played Origin at 18 years old for Queensland. At the same age, Galvin made his debut for a club that had a mortgage on last place.  

Back to Benji's coaching - this time - in his defence.

One of the greatest coaches in the world of rugby league, a certain Wayne James Bennett, has never been classed (either fairly on unfairly) as a tactical genius, yet he has won almost as many career Premierships as both Lachie Galvin and Benji Marshall have won games in the last season and a bit.  

Bennett is seemingly known as someone who knows how to get the best out of his players, and we could therefore put him into the bracket of excellent ‘man manager'. I have heard or seen absolutely nothing that suggests Benji Marshall isn't a great person, and those tend to have a head start when it comes to managing people. Indeed, some very talented players have signed to play underneath him, some even leaving the most successful club for decades!

In fairness to Benji, he has taken on a coaching job that turned premiership-winning coaches Michael Maguire and Ivan Cleary into mere mortals, and Wayne wouldn't even have a bar of it every time he was approached. In only his second season in the hot seat, Benji's Tigers currently sit in the top half of the ladder and conceded only four points in their recent away win against the Knights. It was a result that was a turnaround from their round one defeat - at home - to the same opposition.  

They are also at a 50% winning rate. I always argue that anyone at 50% by Round 8 is within their rights to say they can still win the Premiership, or at least, play finals football.  This is a quantum leap for the Tigers compared to recent years.

Teams that win Premierships have 'togetherness'.

They score plenty thanks to their exciting attackers, but they also defend the football resolutely, together as a team. They defend their turf like their lives depend on it. They don't miss tackles regularly.

How many games have the Tigers lost in the past because of missed tackles? Probably a lot more than they have won with scintillating play from their ‘stars'.

Think of teams like the Penrith Panthers and Melbourne Storm.

In winning the four consecutive titles, Penrith was like a machine that ground out wins.  They had in-game patience, and they were all in sync. The same could be said of the countless Melbourne Storm performances that have made people stand up and take notice for the last two decades.

When I think of Grand Final winning teams, it always seems to be the team that goes the extra mile for each other that reigns supreme. Often, players have sacrificed a bigger payday to stay at their club because of their dedication and belief in their teammates and club culture.  Both in Australia and England, the clubs that stick to a pay structure and don't pay too many - or any, in some cases - exorbitant contracts tend to be near the top of the table. The ones that have too many different players on very different money tend to have good days and bad days.

Different coaches will have different terms for the things that matter when it comes to winning more than losing, but essentially, the message is always very similar. I remember Ricky Stuart talking about ‘Want & Care' or essentially “how much does a player want it” and “how much does a player care”. Look how his Canberra Raiders are going and have gone for the last few years' - the word ‘overperforming' comes to mind. When did they get that wooden spoon they've been tipped for year after year?

A read of Wayne Bennett's books over the years speaks of similar messages that, on face value, sound quite generic but actually mean so much. Des Hasler - who I used to work under - coached teams to Premierships and Grand Finals, is huge on “1%ers” – those are a lot easier to do if you have the desire, the want and care to do them.  I could go on and list several coaches from several eras and several sports. 

If Benji Marshall wants to keep his football team moving in a Finals or maybe even a Premiership direction, the culture and the team ethos is of utmost importance. It's under the microscope right now. What he and the Tigers let go, is what they allow.  

A player who doesn't want to be at the club long term, who makes a decision nearly two seasons before the time comes, could - rightly or wrongly - be accused of not caring very much.

Teams that win Premierships don't keep players who don't want to be part of the journey at the club.    

Lachlan Galvin needs to play Reserve Grade this week, and stay there.  

Lee Addison is a former Manly Sea Eagles and Penrith Panthers coach and the founder of rugbyleaguecoach.com.au. His recently published book ‘Rugby League Coach' is available now on Amazon and at rugbyleaguecoach.com.au.