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Round 20: TITANS vs NZ WARRIORS

After about 6 weeks of effort based play and not much else, Aj has increased his involvement handily every week ovr the last few, to the point he has been more integral to our performances then Ash the last 2 games. It was when AJ left with concussion that we fell in a heap against knights.

His energy and fitness are top level, his passing and kicking confidence is increasing each week as is his general confidence as seen by his decision to dummy the FB and go alone. no way he does that 1 month ago.

I think for all the doom and gloom - we need to give Garth credit for bringing him along nicely this year.

all the backs were outstanding from numbers 1-6, and Ash was reasonable.

Special mention to Sami gave the follow up break out effort we've been waiting for since broncs earlier in season. even prior to consigning RTS to the ankle store, he was playing really well and was often in the middle doing work. good on him.

Peats was tough as nuts and made lots of great tackles and solid hit, and Rein along with Brenko was the game changer and momentum swinger. He was awesome and is regularly making darts in behind enemy lines. If any of the bench hookers are 1 trick ponies - it is Lawton who only seems good for a dummy half scoot and score. its a good trick, but the occasional dive over does not a hooker make. I am more than comfortable with Rein over Lawton.

all the forwards were decent. Proctor had a lot of strong runs in first 20 or so, was waiting for him and ash to do the short ball wrap play that they do similar to JT / Cooper and Slater / Kefusi. it never came for some reason.

I am worried about Arrow. If he isn't right, and last 2 weeks indicate he isn't quite as he is coming off a lot more often then rest him and get his body right.

awesome crowd, beautiful day, and maybe a glimpse that the future isn't as bad as we feared, and might creep up on us sooner than we thought.
 
^^^ I did say after the game that I’m happy to eat my words over Rein DB
No need to rub it in

It’s very easy to wait until 5hours after Fulltime to come waltzing in as the grand poo bah full of wisdom

And Brimson is a 1
His best work is classic sweeping number 1 type involvements
 
reinlawton.jpg
Mr Bods said:
^^^ I did say after the game that I’m happy to eat my words over Rein DB
No need to rub it in

It’s very easy to wait until 5hours after Fulltime to come waltzing in as the grand poo bah full of wisdom

And Brimson is a 1
His best work is classic sweeping number 1 type involvements
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said it 10 days ago, and at least a few other occasions, so i'm not coming in here as captain hindsight.

I am not saying i disagree about AJ, but i am not convinced yet that he wont be a 5/8th long term.
I like when he runs direct, keeps us straight and then that allows the outside guys to have space and hit holes. his tenacious running means you have to commit as a defender.
He has played a lot more 5/8th than fullback in his career speaking to people who watch him a lot.... and bigger thing is, even if he was intended to be a fullback, if his performance indicate he can be a really good 5/8th or that is what is best for the team... shouldnt we be flexible enough to work through that.
Some of his most important contributions are his defence. he stopped two big guys today from scoring almost in a row. do we want to give that up and let him make 1 or 2 tackles a game? and insert Carty, Tyrone, Peachey etc, none of whom will be as strong a defender. we finally fixed that issue, we want to undo it already?

Can a mod please change my title to 'Grand Pooh-Bar of Wisdom', if only to annoy Darren for a little while, then change it back
 
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^^^ There’s no doubt Howie Cunningham that you’ve been consistent in your preference of Rein over Lawton
You were of that opinion when Lawton got rissoled. 100% give you that. Rein as a 17 remains a concern though if there’s an injury in the backline and a reshuffle is needed.

I think Peachey footy that got him a Blues jumper was very much on the back of his 5/8 performances when Cleary was injured.
So a 1679 Of AJ/Peach/Taylor/Peats excites me for next year.

Peachey as a centre to me is a waste of a truly dynamic X Factor player

Cartwright is the piece that I can’t figure out even if he hits form and is on his game again one day.
 
Mr Bods said:
^^^ There’s no doubt Howie Cunningham that you’ve been consistent in your preference of Rein over Lawton
You were of that opinion when Lawton got rissoled. 100% give you that. Rein as a 17 remains a concern though if there’s an injury in the backline and a reshuffle is needed.

I think Peachey footy that got him a Blues jumper was very much on the back of his 5/8 performances when Cleary was injured.
So a 1679 Of AJ/Peach/Taylor/Peats excites me for next year.

Peachey as a centre to me is a waste of a truly dynamic X Factor player

Cartwright is the piece that I can’t figure out even if he hits form and is on his game again one day.
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yeah i agree Peach plays well at 5/8, but i cant see Gordon getting shafted to the wing, he would be leading our player of the year probably or close to it.

So maybe Peach wears 14 for a year, and Rein only plays when Peats is injured, although the courier mail article you commented on earlier suggests Rein deserves Peats spot even.

i have no idea how Garth will sort out his spots next year, there is a lot of moving parts to consider.

Carty for me - if he EVER plays again slots into that 12 jersey unless we get Glenn or a genuine 12. Hipgrave is still a liability for mine.
 
DavidBouveng said:
yeah i agree Peach plays well at 5/8, but i cant see Gordon getting shafted to the wing, he would be leading our player of the year probably or close to it.

So maybe Peach wears 14 for a year, and Rein only plays when Peats is injured, although the courier mail article you commented on earlier suggests Rein deserves Peats spot even.

i have no idea how Garth will sort out his spots next year, there is a lot of moving parts to consider.

Carty for me - if he EVER plays again slots into that 12 jersey unless we get Glenn or a genuine 12. Hipgrave is still a liability for mine.
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Good repartee then DB.
Where in the world is Mexican Titan???
Has he gone underground since Manly’s Epic snatch defeat from the jaws of victory Effort yesterday???
 
After the hollow weeks previous I am pleased that we are on the plus side of the scoreboard but I’m not getting carried away. Nor am I going to enter the sizzling debates over who performed better this week, especially after struggling through p5 of this thread. I am very pleased we won... onwards and upwards!!
 
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Titans v Warriors: Five things we learned
Travis Meyn, The Courier-Mail
https://www.couriermail.com.au/

1. TITANS five-eighth AJ Brimson is one of the NRL’s hottest young playmakers. Brimson has been a success story for the Gold Coast in a disappointing season and showcased his talent with a brilliant solo effort in just his 10th NRL game.

2. BACK-UP Gold Coast hooker Mitch Rein should be the Titans’ starting No. 9. Rein has played all 19 games for the Titans this year and has outperformed Nathan Peats despite being paid about $400,000 less. He deserves to start.

3. THE Warriors are the NRL’s greatest disappointments. New Zealand could have cemented eighth place and a finals berth by beating the Titans but imploded after leading 12-8 at half-time in what was a typical Warriors performance.

4. TITANS winger Phillip Sami has some of the sharpest feet in the game. Sami’s “ankle-breaking” step on Warriors fullback Roger Tuivasa-Sheck was brilliant to watch, especially considering RTS is one of the NRL’s best steppers.

5. THE Titans will be sweating on the availability of captain Ryan James and prop Jarrod Wallace following a suspected “crusher tackle” on Warriors prop James Gavet. The incident looked innocuous but the NRL is keen to stamp those tackles out.
 
Summed up everything perfectly DB. We need to keep building on this confidence and that was something garth bought up in the presser. Imagine if we get cartwright back into some form we could be flying, just hope it isnt that big an ask
 
Barrels said:
Summed up everything perfectly DB. We need to keep building on this confidence and that was something garth bought up in the presser. Imagine if we get cartwright back into some form we could be flying, just hope it isnt that big an ask
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glass half full says that adding an in form Carty, Big Boppin' Boydy and the Peach could have us fairly flying if Brenko, Sami, AJ, etc keep this up and continue to find form.

Dare we dream?
 
If only we didn't get robbed in the rabbits and roosters games. Going to be an exciting year next year. More than happy if we finish 12th or above this season.
 
I'm happy with Peachey in the centres. He is still dynamic and unpredictable out there. I wouldn't want to be the winger on his outside as you won't see much ball. Rein as 14 is still good as our utility is on the field that can cover numerous positions. This is why I think we are in the position of pushing Don out as he isn't as "needed" as previous years.

If the competition of having AJ getting the lime light doesn't entice Taylor into some form then I think he's just getting fat (literally too) off his massive pay day and isn't buying into any culture. We know he has the talent but now he needs to earn his pay packet.

Great win, great buzz on the coast because of it and finally hearing some positive comments on the radio regarding our performance.
 
JunctionBlock said:
I'm happy with Peachey in the centres. He is still dynamic and unpredictable out there. I wouldn't want to be the winger on his outside as you won't see much ball. Rein as 14 is still good as our utility is on the field that can cover numerous positions. This is why I think we are in the position of pushing Don out as he isn't as "needed" as previous years.

If the competition of having AJ getting the lime light doesn't entice Taylor into some form then I think he's just getting fat (literally too) off his massive pay day and isn't buying into any culture. We know he has the talent but now he needs to earn his pay packet.

Great win, great buzz on the coast because of it and finally hearing some positive comments on the radio regarding our performance.
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i think we can add you JB to our list of gold Coast Talents coming into form.

last week or two has been fire. Are you and Garth putting in extras after training?
 
I thought I would share the front of the GC Bulletin's sports page.

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Gold Coast Titans’ young guns put finals on agenda for 2019
https://www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au/

GARTH Brennan’s assertion the Titans are on the road to a strong future gained its biggest tick of approval yesterday as generation next led the Gold Coast to a drought-breaking win against New Zealand.

Five-eighth AJ Brennan, three-quarters Brenko Lee and Phillip Sami and forwards Keegan Hipgrave and Moeaki Fotuaika were instrumental in the win, with Brennan optimistic about the club’s future next season.

“It’s exciting where this club’s heading, we’ve got some super kids coming through and we’ve got some really good experienced guys around them that are helping them,” Brennan said.

“You go through our side — Phil Sami’s young, AJ’s young, Ash is young, Jai Arrow’s young, Moe Fotuaika’s only 18 and doing what he’s doing as a front-rower in the NRL is enormous.

“There’s a massive upside for the Titans.

“We’ve had some heartbreaking times this year and we’ve had some performances that haven’t been where they need to be but I know we’re heading in the right direction.”

One of the features for the Titans is the “experienced” players Brennan talks of are all relatively young as well.

Aside from fullback Michael Gordon, who turns 35 at the end of the season, entrenched Titans players Ryan James, Jarrod Wallace, Nathan Peats and Kevin Proctor are in their late 20s and at the peak of their powers.

Blooding players like Brimson and Fotuaika this season as Sami, Hipgrave and Arrow build on their NRL experience puts the Titans in the box seat for 2019 when the heat will be on Brennan to produce a top-eight result in his second year as head coach.

“I know (the experience they get) this year is going to be great for them going forward,” Brennan said.

“Those guys will be better for the experience, those younger guys, and hopefully some of our senior guys will develop into the leaders that we need them to be.”
 
TOP FIVE TITANS
https://www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au/

AJ BRIMSON

Outstanding in defence again. Scored a try and looked dangerous every time he ran to the line. Made two huge tackles on Roger Tuivasa-Sheck to stop tries. His best game so far in first grade.

BRENKO LEE

In just 10 minutes after halftime, showed why the Titans have given him another year at the club. In setting up a try for Anthony Don and scoring himself through an intercept, Lee almost singlehandedly turned the tide.

RYAN JAMES

While he posted 116m and 23 tackles, James has had better games statistically this season. But few have been as important. The captain led by example, with his offload to set up Phillip Sami’s first try outstanding. Has maintained an incredible standard to be rated one of the league’s best 80-minute forwards.

PHILLIP SAMI

A two-try effort left him equal with Anthony Don on 11 as the club’s leading try-scorers this season. But it’s not just his ability to finish that is impressing, with the 20-yearold displaying greater confidence and a step and speed that will keep him in the Titans team for years to come.

KEEGAN HIPGRAVE

Caught backpeddling at marker as Karl Lawton charged over for a try that put the Warriors back in the lead but that was one of the few mistakes Hipgrave made as he cemented his position as the aggressive force the Titans need. Finished with 117m and 28 tackles to join a celebration of the team’s young guns.
 
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