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Round 18: TITANS vs BRONCOS

GCTTSD said:
What's with us and never having any good young outside backs???? Even Paulo has kicked on and playing first grade at Souths, what's up with spry, pere, gl and seuli?? How is Sami the only center or winger to develop through the club through to first grade, even Kelly had to go to manly first
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Yeah we’ve got a shocking record since the KG/Mead days. Pere will be gone, Spry isn’t ready to play centre and has wingers in front of him, GL is a specialist winger who doesn’t have the match fitness to be a reliable option, and Seiuli is caught between second row and centre without any reserve grade to find out where he fits. Jax Paulo is playing great for Souths I’m really happy for him. Their structure does though have a knack of making wingers looking very good - look at Robert Jennings for example.

This is going to be a tough game and Kelly out is a big loss to our attack. Our edges both look underwhelming and I imagine Fifita will actually turn up wanting to play this weekend.
 
I expect the Drongoes to see this as the game to target to get the wooden spoon off their backs and yes I’m very worried Fifita wants to make a statement.
However, Hurricane understands what the fans want more than any Coach we have had and I’m sure he’s going to have our team primed for the Derby.
 
Hail Sezer said:
Yeah we’ve got a shocking record since the KG/Mead days. Pere will be gone, Spry isn’t ready to play centre and has wingers in front of him, GL is a specialist winger who doesn’t have the match fitness to be a reliable option, and Seiuli is caught between second row and centre without any reserve grade to find out where he fits. Jax Paulo is playing great for Souths I’m really happy for him. Their structure does though have a knack of making wingers looking very good - look at Robert Jennings for example.

This is going to be a tough game and Kelly out is a big loss to our attack. Our edges both look underwhelming and I imagine Fifita will actually turn up wanting to play this weekend.
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Where is Pere going mate ??
 
HZ do you think that Paulo would have been given the opportunity if he stayed with us? It’s seems to me that over the years we have been reluctant to give these younger guys a go and happy to stick with the status quo - despite their shortfalls. This year has been tough on the extended squad with them having no chance to impress in QCup. Take GL for example, we have heard how he lacks match fitness but how is he meant to gain that without being given a run?

Other teams outside of the eight tend to look to the next season and blood younger players tsp they experience for the next year. We don’t seem to do that when it comes to outside backs. We have been happy to do it in the forwards but apart from Arthars, who was the last rookie winger or centre we played? Sami? He’s now played 50 games.
 
I was really looking forward to Kelly vs Staggs because I thought it would be a great way to show all those Broncos fans how overrated Staggs is and how good Kelly actually is.
 
Saw Dominique Loudon post a training vid of spry spending some time in the centers with don, I know fermor will do a solid job in the centers and might be better defensively but I'd love to see spry in there or even on the bench, staggs is horriblly defensivly would be good to have a natural center attacking that edge, only one way to find out if he's up to it or not
 
If they put Dearden/Fifita on the same side now that Glenn is back...that could be lethal too. Apart from his kicking game which hasn't been great, Dearden has looked dangerous these past few weeks. Pretty nervous going into this one.
 
Titans v Broncos: Kelly, Jolliffe out; Glenn returns
https://www.nrl.com/

The roles are shockingly reversed as former NRL easybeats the Titans head into their derby with Brisbane as Queensland's leading team.

Six points clear of the Broncos and four in advance of the Cowboys, the Gold Coast are already two wins ahead of their 2019 tally and in the form to add to that total.

The Titans enter the contest fresh off their first back-to-back wins of the season, having accounted for the Dragons (14-10) and Bulldogs (18-14), while Brisbane haven't claimed two points since they beat Canterbury 26-8 in round nine.

The Broncos have conceded 38.1 points per game during their eight-game losing streak to saddle them with the worst defensive record in the competition - their 548 points against a massive 121 more than the 15th-ranked Titans.

Team news
Titans: Centre Brian Kelly is out with an ankle injury. Beau Fermor will move from second row to centre and Keegan Hipgrave comes into the pack. Prop Jaimin Jolliffe is also sidelined with an ankle problem and his place is taken by Moeaki Fotuaika, who will move from the bench to the starting side.

Jai Whitbread has been added to the bench. Jai Arrow played long minutes in his return from a shoulder issue last week and could move into the starting side closer to game time.

Hooker Nathan Peats (calf) has been included in the extended squad and could return. The Titans are aiming to defeat the Broncos twice in a season for the first time.

Broncos: Captain Alex Glenn will return from a knee injury in the back row with Ben Te'o going to the bench. Suspended duo Jordan Riki and Jamil Hopoate both drop off the interchange while Joe Ofahengaue returns from a ban.

Winger Xavier Coates (foot) has replaced Ethan Bullemor on the pine. The Broncos are aiming to avoid a club record ninth consecutive loss.

Key match-up
Jamal Fogarty v Tom Dearden: These two young halfbacks have made strong claims to being their teams' play-making future. Dearden (15 career games) has been one of the few bright spots in Brisbane's dismal 2020 collapse while Fogarty has progressed so rapidly that he was installed as stand-in Titans captain despite still only having 17 total games under his belt

Stat attack
The Gold Coast are chasing their first season double over the Broncos in the club's 14th NRL season. Five times the Titans have won the first clash of the year and failed to seal the deal in the return bout, including in both 2018 and 2019, but with all the momentum sixth time could be the charm.
 
From latest League Unlimited program
https://leagueunlimited.com/news/35105-the-front-row-volume-1-issue-16/

RoundTITBRON.jpg
 
Wouldn't Spry be up against Farnworth???

Young Ton and the Don up against Oates and Staggs...Thompson and Spry vs Kennar and Farnworth
 
Staggs plays on the right and Young on the right so it will be Spry up against Staggs. Tough challenge for his first game at centre in the NRL
 
hangingon said:
Staggs plays on the right and Young on the right so it will be Spry up against Staggs. Tough challenge for his first game at centre in the NRL
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OH! I was going by the line ups above. Staggs is named and numbered at right centre. No. 3 (Their right)

Young is named and numbered at left centre. No. 4 (Our left)

Our left centre (and wing) marks up against their right centre (and wing). Usually...
 
Fair enough mate I don’t think the numbers really mean too much these days though. Dom Loudon actually just said Young will switch to the left to mark Staggs, hopefully that turns out to be a good decision
 
hangingon said:
Fair enough mate I don’t think the numbers really mean too much these days though. Dom Loudon actually just said Young will switch to the left to mark Staggs, hopefully that turns out to be a good decision
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No worries, mate.

You know what I like seeing? When centres link up on the same side of the field in attack. Not enough of that now days...
 
hangingon said:
Fair enough mate I don’t think the numbers really mean too much these days though. Dom Loudon actually just said Young will switch to the left to mark Staggs, hopefully that turns out to be a good decision
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It had to be done. Staggs is unbelievable with his agility and strength.
 
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