Co-captain Elijah Taylor is in no doubt the Wests Tigers have now solved two of their major problems with the return of Benji Marshall.

The club has desperately missed the experience and on-field leadership of the 2010 Golden Boot winner since he left four years ago for a brief stint in rugby, three seasons at the St George Illawarra Dragons and another at the Brisbane Broncos.

Searching for the right recipe to revive the struggling joint venture club, coach Ivan Cleary turned to a familiar face in Marshall, who spent the first 10 years of his decorated playing career as a Tiger, including the memorable 2005 premiership victory.

In round one of the Telstra Premiership an underestimated Tigers clan proved they are here to compete with the big dogs with their 10-8 upset win over the Sydney Roosters at ANZ Stadium, with Marshall playing a central role after a late call-up to the starting side to replace injured recruit Josh Reynolds.

"Benji Marshall was outstanding in the weekend's game, his experience really shone through," Taylor said.

"When [Luke] Brooks got sent off for 10 minutes Benji just controlled the game, he slowed it down, he kicked it out.