Time hasn't dulled Sheens' steely edge
February 27, 2010
Risk taker ... Tim Sheens believes the Tigers are in good shape to challenge for honours this season.
The veteran coach still firmly believes near enough is not good enough - so much so he's prepared to walk away if success doesn't come to the Tigers soon, writes Greg Prichard.
Tim Sheens has been around for a long time, but to call him a survivor would be to suggest he has merely found a way to cling on, rather than achieve.
He has won four premierships. Had he not already won three of those with Canberra between 1989 and 1994, his career might have fizzled out after a four-year stint at North Queensland ended badly in 2001, but Wests Tigers clearly thought him capable of leading them somewhere special.
The club's faith seemed to have been vindicated when Sheens advanced them from 13th in 2003 to ninth in 2004 and, dramatically, a premiership in 2005. They haven't made the finals in the four years since, but are set to extend his contract, which runs out at the end of this season. That suggests both an acceptance by the club that circumstances beyond the coach's control have contributed to that recent record and, more importantly, a belief in his near-enough-is-not-good-enough philosophy.
Indeed, Sheens revealed to the Herald that he has pushed for only a short-term contract extension - possibly only one year - reasoning that failure to challenge seriously for honours either this season or next will signify that it is time for him to move on.
''You can play safe and maybe make the semis, but I wouldn't give up the grand final for four semi-final appearances,'' Sheens says. ''I like to take risks to try to establish a winning team. I don't think just making the semis is as big as people think it is. There are quite a few clubs that would give up a few semi-final appearances to win one premiership.
''I'm not giving myself an excuse, but unless you make the play-offs with a chance to win it, it's a waste of time. I don't say the only time we want to get there is when we're a chance to win it, but if we get there and go straight out, I mean, finishing ninth or finishing eighth and going straight out is not much different, really. It's just something on paper.''
It's no secret the Tigers have had big issues with money. The club has taken many games away from Leichhardt Oval and Campbelltown Sports Ground, giving up crucial home-ground advantage, in order to receive financial guarantees to play elsewhere. For a couple of years, they even took home games against the Warriors to Christchurch.
''When I took over, three years after they started, they had blown all of their money and owed the league a million dollars,'' Sheens says.
The Tigers have remained competitive, but in recent years have teased their fans rather than fulfilled their desires, losing games narrowly and finishing just outside the top eight.
Last year, but for a tight game late in the season in which Parramatta narrowly eclipsed them, it could have been Wests Tigers instead of the Eels who burst into the finals as the competition's loose cannon. But, even then, a heavy injury toll might have stopped them advancing much further.
''We lost two wingers in that one game against Parra, and one of them, Taniela [Tuiaki], had been the NRL's leading try-scorer all year,'' Sheens said. ''Plus, [prop] Bryce Gibbs got suspended, and when we went in against Canterbury in the last round, I had seven guys take local anaesthetics to play, so it wasn't healthy. We may not have gone into the finals in a condition to win it. But if you go in fit - in '05 we won it with a healthy squad and in '89, '90 and '94 we won with fit squads at the Raiders. In '91, we had players out and others playing hurt, and that contributed to our loss when we had a chance for a 'three-peat'. You look at [Melbourne coach] Craig Bellamy not having Cameron Smith and Ryan Hoffman available a couple of years ago, and last year [Manly coach] Dessie Hasler's nightmare with injury and issues.
''Any coach will tell you, you've got to have the right people available at the right time of year. Most of it [at the Tigers] comes down to a lack of budget to acquire depth of players. We've had to rely a lot on kids when we've had senior players out.
''Last year, our three [licensed] clubs put in less than $700,000 - between them, not each. Some clubs put in $3-$4 million. People have got to understand we've got limited budgets. This is the first year we've actually had depth of players and been able to reinvest back into the organisation with more equipment and more staff.
''The club's ticking along pretty well at the moment. We're producing our own kids, and we're very serious about continuing that, but it's only recently that we've actually gone back to buying some big-name players to support our junior policy. We haven't had the money to do so in the past, nor have we been attractive enough. People wouldn't come to us.''
The competition is more even than ever and Wests Tigers - now boasting Lote Tuquiri and the recently re-signed Benji Marshall on their books - give the impression that if everything clicks they could make run at the title this season. It is only a couple of weeks to the premiership kick-off now. The days are long, the preparation is intense and the aim clear.
''We're always building to try to get to that point of winning a premiership,'' Sheens says. ''You've got to win enough games along the way to put yourself in a position to play finals football and be a genuine chance, and then you've got to be able to take that extra step.
''It's not easy to do, there's a lot of hard work involved and a lot of stepping stones, but it's what you're in business for as a professional coach. If you take a team on, then on behalf of your club and your supporters and your sponsors, it's about trying to win it.''
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...-dulled-sheens-steely-edge-20100226-p904.html
