Benji Marshall’s feud with agent Isaac Moses turns up a gear

The troubles in Tiger town keep piling up after the Rugby League Players Association (RLPA) confirmed it has been in contact with the Wests Tigers to seek clarification over concerns involving current and recently departed players – despite the club publicly denying any formal complaints have been made.

This new stem of drama, broke by The Sydney Morning Herald on Monday, claimed Tigers players Justin Matamua and Brandon Tumeth had raised issues through the RLPA about their treatment by the club.

The concerns allegedly involved their relegation to lower-tier competitions, despite being under top 30 NRL player contracts.

It will come as no surprise that both players are also managed by high-profile agent Isaac Moses, who is the agent representing the young playmaker Lachlan Galvin in a separate and ongoing dispute with the club.

The Wests Tigers issued a strongly worded statement on Tuesday afternoon, rejecting all claims outlined in the report by the Sydney Morning Herald, suggesting Matamua and Tumeth had not lodged any complaints.

“The story is simply not true,” the press statement said.

“Neither player has ever made a complaint to the club or the RLPA.

“This was confirmed by both the players and the RLPA this morning,” they said.

However, the RLPA soon issued its own statement confirming it had reached out to the club in response to concerns raised through the appropriate channels.

“We can confirm that we have had a conversation with the Wests Tigers asking for an explanation on concerns involving some current and recently departed players,” said RLPA chief executive Clint Newton.

“We will continue to work with the club on these matters and anything else brought to our attention.”

“Our job is to ensure the employment terms of the players’ contracts and the standards under the collective bargaining agreement are met, and that clubs provide a safe and fair workplace.”

It is understood the initial concerns were raised by Tumeth’s agent, rather than by the players directly.

Nonetheless, the RLPA stepping in has added more pressure on the Tigers, as the claims of bullying escape the club.

The new development comes as tensions brewed this last week between the Tigers and Lachlan Galvin, who was dropped to NSW Cup after rejecting a massive six-year deal reportedly worth around $6 million.

Galvin is now being legally represented by senior barrister Arthur Moses SC, with allegations of workplace bullying being noted in legal correspondence to the club on the playmakers behalf.

Tigers CEO Shane Richardson come out and publicly accused agent Isaac Moses of running a “smear campaign” against head coach and club legend Benji Marshall, with whom Moses is said to have a long-running personal feud, and of attempting to force Galvin’s exit from the club.

“It’s Benji versus Isaac,” said rugby league journalist Michael Chammas on 100% Footy.

“There’s clearly a standoff going on here, and Isaac wants his client out.”

Moses has a history of pushing for early exits for his clients at the Tigers (previously with David Klemmer and John Bateman) and now it appears he’s using the similar tactics to get a same result.

Chammas also revealed that players Matamua and Tumeth – despite being top 30 contracted players- are currently playing in competitions significantly below their level.

“Matamua at the moment is playing Ron Massey Cup, which is effectively below NSW Cup, and Tumeth is actually playing Sydney Shield, which is even below that,” Chammas said.

Their shock relegation to lower-tier competitions has sparked serious questions about whether the club is using team selections as a weapon – fueling speculation of internal power plays amid escalating tensions between the Tigers and player agent Isaac Moses.

“People will say these players are whinging because they’re not playing first grade,” continued Chammas.

“But that’s something the RLPA is growingly becoming concerned with, the trend coming out of the Wests Tigers,” he said.