With his side's finals hopes all but done, Wests Tigers coach Michael Maguire will consider making selection changes over the final rounds with a view to the future.
Saturday's 30-6 loss to ladder leaders Penrith at Panthers Stadium leaves the Tigers six points adrift of the eighth-placed Sharks so they'll need a miracle to break an eight-year finals drought.
"I'll definitely be looking at [picking the team with a focus on the future]. I want to be able to see the depths of some of the people we have in the organisation," Maguire said.
"I've got a really committed group that's been training underneath us. I'll have a look and assess it. At the end of the day, whoever puts the jersey on has got to go out and compete and that's something I'll continually instil."
Star loan hooker Harry Grant returned from a knee injury, playing 58 minutes as he shared time with Jacob Liddle.
Bit of Marshall magic gets us started
Maguire was satisfied with how his dummy-halves combined but said he would weigh up giving Liddle a bigger role given Grant is expected to return to Melbourne next year.
The Tigers started fast against Penrith, scoring the first try through David Nofoaluma, and Maguire liked the desire his side showed.
However, he admitted there was a noticeable class gap.
"I know what we need to do and where we need to get to. We've just got to keep our heads down and keep working towards it," he said.
Match Highlights: Panthers v Wests Tigers
"Obviously [finals] opportunities are closing and closing, but ... where we want to make sure we get to is where Penrith are currently.
"You could see the effort and that's one thing. It's having the effort there week-in, week-out."
Asked about the fiery nature of the contest and the growing rivalry between the Panthers and Tigers, Maguire said: "There was a lot on the line there for us tonight. That was our season.
"You need to turn up every week, no matter who you play, whether it's rivalry or not. It's a competitive edge you need to have."
