Round 20 team analysis; V St George Illawarra Dragons

In what was arguably the Wests Tigers best performance since the earlier rounds of the 2014 season, the Wests Tigers kept their heads above the water for a while longer yet in defeating Canterbury 46-18 on the weekend. The win keeps the Tigers well alive in the race for a top 8 berth, sitting 9th on for and against. A win this weekend will likely move the Tigers into the top 8.

This weekend's opponents. the St George Illawarra Dragons, sit 12th on the ladder but only 2 points adrift of the Tigers. The Dragons failed to really test Manly on Monday night at Kogarah Oval but have shown they'll be more than capable of being a real threat to Wests on Sunday afternoon. Gareth Widdop, Josh Dugan and Benji Marshall loom as the biggest dangers for Wests but wingers Jason Nightingale and Brett Morris also possess the kind of finishing ability to also compliment the ball playing ability of the aforementioned trio.

For the Tigers they've named the same 18 man squad that was named last week. That means Chris Lawrence has been named despite picking up an ankle injury on the weekend. The chances of Lawrence playing this weekend will likely be scrutinized later this week with the club yet to announce results of scans taken.

If Lawrence is out it's likely Wests will move either Bodene Thompson or Dene Halatau into the centres to replace him. Mitchell Moses and Pat Richards who are both nursing groin strains are not expected to miss the game but continue to be monitored medical staff.

In terms of a game plan for this week, Wests will likely look for a blue print similar to the one which worked so well last weekend. Wests strength right now lies in the ability of their forward pack to find its playmakers Blake Austin, Luke Brooks, Robbie Farah and Mitchell Moses the room to work their craft.  It's staggering to think that in last weekend's win Captain Farah was the least involved of the four guys, as Austin, Brooks and Moses did the damage instead.

Sunday's match up with the Dragons shapes as another must win encounter for the Tigers. With six games remaining the Tigers will need at least another 3 wins, perhaps 4 and crucially winning against sides also in the top 8 race could make all the difference. There's also the added incentive on another couple of fronts. Firstly, the Tigers will be looking to make amends for the Round 1 touch up they received at the hands of the Dragons, losing 44-24. On that day Gareth Widdop had an absolute field day!

An even bigger incentive looms in the face of former Tigers great Benji Marshall who lines up at halfback for Sunday's clash. Marshall who left the club at the end of 2013 to play Super Rugby with the Auckland Blues finds himself back in league and opposing the Tigers this weekend in what will be the biggest talking point of the oncoming weekend. Marshall, the past of Wests Tigers gets his chance to face the Wests Tigers future. Youngsters Luke Brooks and Mitchell Moses were two of the beneficiaries of Marshall's exit. It all adds up to a wealth of skill on show this weekend and arguably one of the most talked about games of 2014.

WESTS TIGERS TEAM V ST GEORGE ILLAWARRA DRAGONS

Tigers: 1. Mitchell Moses 2. Keith Lulia 3. Tim Simona 4. Chris Lawrence 5. Pat Richards 6. Blake Austin 7. Luke Brooks 8. Aaron Woods 9. Robbie Farah 10. Keith Galloway 11. Curtis Sironen 12. Bodene Thompson 13. Adam Blair

Interchange: 14. Ava Seumanufagai 15. Martin Taupau 16. Dene Halatau 17. James Gavet 18. Sauaso Sue