'It's a bombshell': Tigers 'circus' continues as crisis talks loom after ...

Wests Tigers coach Tim Sheens has reportedly not been invited to an emergency meeting at Concord on Monday, further highlighting his declining influence at the club.

The Daily Telegraph reports that recruitment manager Scott Fulton and assistant coach Benji Marshall were summoned by club chairman Lee Hagipantelis and chief executive Justin Pascoe to thrash out their differences, but Sheens was not invited.

Insiders told the Telegraph that the warring pair will be issued an ultimatum to start working together or face the consequences.

The Tigers previously came under fire for hiring Fulton without consulting their coaching staff. It then emerged there was friction between Fulton and Marshall, who is expected to coach the club from 2025.

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The latest tension between the pair stems from a disagreement over who they should target to replace Luke Brooks.

Reports emerged over the weekend that the club is on the verge of agreeing to terms with former Canberra Raiders halfback Aidan Sezer. It’s a move that has the backing of Marshall.

Fulton, however, is understood to want to pursue Jack Cogger who has impressed while Nathan Cleary has been sidelined with a hamstring injury.

Now according to the SMH, tensions have surfaced after Marshall’s manager was prompted to deny suggestions his client was set to benefit from the Tigers’ recruitment of Sezer.

It followed claims from Fulton’s godfather, Peter Peters, that a senior figure at the club was pushing for Sezer as the club’s next recruit due to owning a 15 per cent share in ARIA Management, who represent Marshall.

“Before I go any further I want to declare that Scott Fulton is my godson before people jump on that bandwagon and say I’m just supporting him. I’m not, I’m telling it as I see it,” Peters said on Sydney radio on the weekend.

“Aidan Sezer has been a client of the long-time highly respected manager Sam Ayoub for a long, long time. Currently, the deal with the Tigers, if it goes through, is being organised by another agency (ARIA management).

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“I’ve been told today, it’s a bit of a bombshell, that a current high-profile Tigers official is alleged to have 15 per cent share in the company trying to lure Sezer unbeknown to Sam Ayoub, who still thinks he is managing him.”

Matt Desira, who is the director of ARIA Management, has been Marshall’s long term manager and also has Daine Laurie on his books.

“Benji Marshall doesn’t and never has had a stake in ARIA management group,” Desira said.

“Any suggestion that is the case is not only wrong, but defamatory.”

Rugby league legend Greg Alexander, meanwhile, questioned how infighting between club figures has been leaked to the media.

“Why do we all know about this?” Alexander asked on Fox League.

“When it’s the Tigers, everyone knows about it. Why is Tim Sheens being left out of this?

“They hired Scott Fulton without any knowledge of the coaching staff. Why would that happen? And look at the drama that it’s caused now.

“Benji and Scott Fulton can’t agree on which player they want at the club.”

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Queensland great Corey Parker continued: “Get the music out, the circus has been playing for a while now.

“It’s really unfortunate for the players and the fans involved.”

It has also emerged a pair of player agents held crisis meetings with the club last week, voicing concerns regarding the treatment and development of their players.

Players have reportedly asked the agents to seek confirmation that there will be a coaching change for the 2024 season.

Mario Tartak was reportedly one of the managers, with both young guns Latu and Samuela Fainu on his books.

The other, Daniel O’Loughlin, manages key forwards Stefano Utoikamanu and Isaiah Papali’i.

The Tigers are staring down the barrel of another wooden spoon finish in the NRL, currently 17th on the ladder with three wins in 17 matches.

On Friday, the Tigers suffered a 34-18 loss to the Newcastle Knights at McDonald Jones Stadium, their sixth consecutive defeat.