The Wests Tigers emerged with a gritty six-point victory on Saturday night over St. George.
The Dragons attempted to pull off a late-game heist, with a try in the 77th minute from young forward Hamish Stewart putting them within striking distance of Benji Marshall's men.
Marshall made it clear in his post-match press conference that the performance was far from what his side's capable of.
"Obviously happy we won, but we made it hard to be honest," he said.
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"I’m not ungrateful that we won, don't get me wrong, I just know there’s a lot more in us."
The last few minutes was a nervous stretch for Marshall up in the coaches box, with several lapses in discipline and execution almost costing the Tigers their fifth win of the season.
"That would’ve been a tough pill to swallow if we lost," he said.
Despite the narrow margin, the result signified a big step in the right direction for the club, who have spent the last few seasons dwelling at the bottom of the table.
"As much as you can look at last year and say, yeah we would’ve lost that game, we’ve got a different team and a different squad. That’s why the expectations are probably a bit higher," he said.
"My belief’s never wavered. Like I’ve had belief in the squad, the guys have bought in and added a lot to our team,"
"They’ve set standards for themselves from the start of preseason that they’re prepared to live by."
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Hooker and captain Apisai Koroisau put himself back in the frame for State of Origin selection after an impressive performance which helped steer his side to victory.
"If he gets selected, everyone knows what he’s going to do there, he wouldn’t let anyone down," said Marshall.
"I’d rather he plays [for New South Wales] to be honest,"
"He doesn’t like people talking about him. But, yes he says he’s available,"
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The Tigers face a massive test next week as they travel down to AAMI Park to play the Storm.
"We’ve got to go play Melbourne in Melbourne next week," he said.
"That’s probably one of the toughest tasks in rugby league at the moment with the team that they’ve got."