Olam to start for Tigers in round three

SYDNEY: Wests Tigers coach Benji Marshall has named a 22-man squad for Saturday’s round three match against Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks at Leichhardt Oval.
Justin Olam will make his first appearance for the club against the Sharks on Saturday and become Wests Tigers Player #281.
Olam comes into the centres replacing Starford To’a who has undergone ankle surgery and is expected to miss eight weeks.
The PNG international was rested last week after picking up a knee injury in the preseason challenge match against the Dragons.
Aidan Sezer has been named to start in the halves alongside Lachlan Galvin, with Jayden Sullivan to come off the bench.
When Marshall signed Sullivan from the Dragons the rookie coach told the young playmaker he wanted him to “own the team”.
But just 55 minutes into the Tigers’ first game of the season last weekend and the only thing Sullivan owned was a seat on the bench after Marshall pulled him midway through a thumping from the Raiders.
The 22-year-old struggled to inject himself and finished with just nine run metres from three carries, conceded a penalty, produced an error and missed four tackles.
Conversely, Lachlan Galvin was playing in the halves alongside Sullivan in his NRL debut and ran for 115 metres from 10 carries that produced three tackle busts and a linebreak, while he didn’t miss any of his 21 tackles.
Sullivan was dragged for veteran halfback Aidan Sezer who will start at No. 7 this Saturday night against the Sharks, with Sullivan on the bench. The demotion to the pine just one game into the season suggests Sullivan, who left the Dragons for more NRL minutes, has plenty of work in front of him.
Sezer hasn’t started in the NRL since the 2019 grand final, but Marshall insisted on bringing the 32-year-old home from the Super League to give his squad some experience. – Agencies