'Driving the standard': The cubs pushing Wests Tigers towards long-term success
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Pheonix Godinet has never been afraid to think big.
In fact, at the age of eight Godinet first announced to his parents of his dream of playing in the NRL as an 18-year-old.
The goal is now written on a whiteboard in the teenager's bedroom, the first thing he reads when he wakes up in the morning and the last thing he thinks about before going to bed.
It's ambitious, sure, but the Wests Tigers talent has never been one to shy away from a challenge.
"I want to get an NRL debut this year," Godinet told NRL.com. "That's the main goal, to make my debut. I turn 19 in June so I have it written up in my room that I want a debut before the ninth of June.
"I've always set goals for myself. It was only two years ago when I started hanging my goals up in my room. I can see it every time I wake up, it's the first thing I see before I go to gym. I start off my morning by looking at my goals."
Match: Wests Tigers v Roosters
Round 2 -
home Team
Wests Tigers
away Team
Roosters
Venue: McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle
Godinet is preparing to make his first appearance in the Witzer Pre-Season Challenge the Tigers take on the Roosters on Saturday night, with coach Benji Marshall using the clash to showcase the next generation of emerging talent.
The punishing edge forward's dream of playing the Tigers is driven by his desire to follow in the footsteps of his father's cousin Pita Godinet, who played for the club in 2018.
New. Bigger. Better.
An NRL debut before he turns 19 in June is not out of the question for a teenager who has enjoyed a rapid rise through the Tigers pathway.
After leading the Magpies to the 2024 Harold Matthews grand final, Godinet started last season in SG Ball. By the end of the year, the teenager hade made his NSW Cup debut and represented the Australian Schoolboys.
It's a stunning turnaround for a kid who struggled to make junior representative teams growing up and looked set to pursue a career in rugby union before the Tigers came calling.
"It was a big change from the start of the year to the end," Godinet said. "When I was playing NSW Cup I was still playing my school games three days later. Going from Cup to school I could really see the difference in speed and physicality.
"It will be a cool experience playing against the NRL players in a full game and it's a chance for me to prove that I'm ready."
2026 is going to be even better!
A new crop of Tiger cubs will be on display at McDonald Jones Stadium on Saturday night, with some of the club's brightest young talent to join Godinet on the field.
Boom 180year-old Heamasi Makasini will start in the centres, having made his NRL debut in Round 27 last year.
Queensland Under 19s star Javon Andrews has been named at five-eighth while Christian Taupau-Moors and Jared Haywood will both come of the bench.
Javon's got skills
Taupau-Moors is the nephew of former Tigers forward Junior Moors. Like Godinet, he made his NSW Cup debut while still at school last year and is viewed as a future star.
Haywood grew up idolising Cameron Smith and looks set to step into the No.9 jumper when Api Koroisau hangs up the boots in the coming years.
Throw in Siotame Havea Jr, Heath Mason and the Fainu brothers and the Tigers have a talented crop of juniors making the transition to senior rugby league.
The challenge now is turning the youngsters into NRL stars as the club chases long-term success.
It's a position the Tigers have been in the past, only to see young talent depart for rival teams.
Coach Benji Marshall has committed a significant amount of time to developing the next generation and Taupau-Moors said they feel a responsibility to deliver a return on the club's investment.
"Having Pheonix, Siotame, Jared, having all those guys around me has been great," Taupau-Moors said. "I've known them all since I was pretty young.
"It pushes me to be better and we all compete against each other trying to be the best. It drives our standards and we're all trying to drive the standard from the bottom to the top. We're trying to help at training with our voices and being vocal.
"It has been a good challenge this pre-season, it's been a good learning opportunity and a chance to cement our mark in the squad."
Rugby league is back for 2026. Catch all the action from the second week of the Witzer Pre-Season Challenge from Thursday night live on Kayo and Fox Sports.
