Under-fire Wests Tigers coach Mick Potter blamed the club's growing injury toll for yet another defeat that his players described as "embarrassing". To make matters worse, their casualty ward could be set to grow as Aaron Woods left the field with a knee injury.
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The Tigers have now conceded more than 100 points in just seven days after a 58-point hammering by the Cowboys last week was compounded by a heavy defeat to the Roosters and Potter said there was little he could do given the lack of fit players at his disposal.
Five positional changes in the backline were made just an hour before kick-off as Luke Brooks and debutant Jy Hitchcox were rushed into the side having had little preparation during the week. The shift resulted in a mostly stagnant attack as the Tigers appeared visibly disjointed, and according to Potter, until their fitness fortunes change, their struggles will likely continue.
"I just think it's where we're at with injuries, we lack personnel. We've got guys playing that are playing now that are playing busted. That's it, that situation that we're really struggling to fill a team every week. Most of them are impact or contact injuries, nothing we can do about them," Potter said.
Origin prop Aaron Woods was forced off the field late in the game after injuring his knee. While it does not look serious, Potter said it will require assessment and has cast doubt over whether he will play against the Bulldogs next week.
"He got a knock to his knee so I'm not sure to the extent of that, he’ll play if he possibly can. He loves playing and we'll get him back if we can," Potter said.
Forward James Gavet was stood down for breaching club policy on matchday, but Potter played down the severity of the disciplinary measures.
"He just didn't follow protocol for what we need every week. We had to make and we made a stand," he said.
