Wests Tigers sweat on Luai ban after high tackle

The Wests Tigers are staring down the barrel of a major selection headache ahead of Saturday night’s clash with the Broncos, with marquee signing Jarome Luai set to miss the match after being charged by the NRL match review committee.

The former Panther was hit with a Grade 2 careless high tackle charge for a shot on Warriors winger Edward Kosi during Sunday’s narrow 22-20 loss in Hamilton.

While Luai was placed on report and Kosi was forced from the field for a head-injury assessment, which he later passed, the four-time premiership-winning halfback avoided the sin bin during the match.

The Tigers will be without their star recruit for one game if he takes the early guilty plea, but they’ll risk a two-match suspension if they fight the charge and lose.

The timing couldn’t be worse for Benji Marshall’s side, who are now 2-2 and were left ruing several contentious calls late in the contest.

Marshall was visibly frustrated post-game, opting to bite his tongue when asked about refereeing decisions, including a crucial late penalty against Alex Seyfarth for a high shot on Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad.

That infringement led to the match-winning goal from Warriors five-eighth Luke Metcalf.

“You were watching the game; you write whatever you think,” Marshall said.

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“I don’t want to do what Ricky [Stuart] did and risk getting fined… so I won’t bring it up.”

There was at least some good news for the Tigers, with Seyfarth escaping with a $1,000 fine for his tackle.

However, Luai’s looming absence — coupled with a possible arm injury sustained in the same game — has cast a shadow over the club’s strong start to the season.

The Tigers come up against a strong Broncos squad as hefty outsiders at $5.80 with top online bookmakers.

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