In more good news for Tigers fans following the announcement that incoming coach Tim Sheens would take control of the side this week after Brett Kimmorley tested positive for COVID, the Daily Telegraph reports that Benji Marshall has quit his media duties effective immediately.
Marshall resigned from his roles at Fox Sports and Triple M due to the demands of the mammoth job ahead, hitting the ground running at the Tigers months before he was due to start in November.
โItโs born out of wanting to get started now with Tim,โ Marshall confirmed to David Riccio.
โThereโs work to be done as far as planning for next season, how we want to play and what type of roster reflects that style.
โIt was a tough call as Iโve enjoyed my time with Fox and Triple M thoroughly. But Iโve never been half-hearted about things and I need to focus on the Tigers so weโre ready on November 1 โ not just getting started.โ
Though the news about Marshallโs future comes just hours after it was announced Sheens would join the team for this weekendโs clash against North Queensland, the two decisions are unrelated โ Marshall met with executives from both parties last Monday to advise them of his plans.
While Marshallโs decision will see the end of his Monday night show on Fox League, he has been fully supported and thanked by both organisations.
The Tigers are still rooted to the foot of the NRL ladder following a string of poor performances and instability that resulted in the sacking of previous coach Michael Maguire.
Though theyโve shown recent improvement in tough losses to Penrith and Parramatta, things donโt get any easier this week against the high-flying Cowboys.
The game kicks off this Sunday at 4.05pm (AEST) at Queensland Country Bank Stadium.