Benji Marshall is happy to cut his fairytale return to the Wests Tigers' No.6 jersey short when Josh Reynolds returns next month from a hamstring injury.
A year since the club sacked Jason Taylor as coach with the Tigers in turmoil, Marshall has helped to take the side to an undefeated season start with shock wins over the Sydney Roosters and Melbourne.
Marshall's composure and tempo have been crucial in both victories, playing again in the No.6 jersey he had made famous in his 201 games at the Tigers from 2003-13.
But with Reynolds expected back for the Tigers in round five or six, Marshall said he'd happily return to the bench utility role he thought he'd be playing throughout the pre-season.
"I've got to be honest - it's been pretty tiring," the 33-year-old said ahead of Friday's clash with former club Brisbane.
"I probably wasn't ready for that; to start the season, with an interrupted pre-season I've had with the baby, and I hurt my calf there.
"I was only supposed to play 30-40 minutes and was probably going to go to hooker.
"From my point of view, I'm just going to keep putting in 100 per cent each week and, if that keeps me there, it keeps me there. If that doesn't, then that's what (coach) Ivan (Cleary) thinks is best for the team."
Marshall's influence on halfback Luke Brooks has been the most pronounced.
Having spent most of his career playing alongside the equally youthful Mitchell Moses, Brooks credited Marshall as a calming influence on him and the entire squad over the opening two weeks of 2018.
"What I have enjoyed is having to step up and take a bit of pressure off Luke," Marshall said.
"He's been here for a few years now and had a lot of pressure on his shoulders. With having two options to kick and two options to attack from, I feel like I can relieve a bit of that pressure.
"On the weekend, he ran for over 100 metres for the first time in a long time. I thought it was good signs."
For all their success over the first two rounds, the Tigers have scored only two tries - the least of any team in the competition.
They have beaten two of the NRL's best on the back of defence and grit - two terms not often associated with the Tigers in recent years.
"When you make a habit of losing for the last few years, it can become part of the culture and become acceptable," Marshall said.
"We just wanted to change a bit of that in the pre-season and everything was a competition. If you won, you got rewarded. And if you lost, you got punished."
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