DIEHARD
28-02-08, 04:58 AM
Titans look to the future
GOLD Coast Titans will launch their second season at their new Robina stadium. Karl deKroo talks to Titans CEO Michael Searle about the challenges ahead.
AS a club how do you compare where you are now to the same time last year?
We are a lot more relaxed. We learnt a lot last year. We were going into the unknown and that made it very difficult.
There is still a fair amount of intensity and excitement this year, but this time we know what is coming and we have a lot to look forward to. We are a much better balanced footy side.
We have managed to acquire both speed and size and I'm excited about what's possible despite so-called experts predicting doom and gloom.
Can you believe you have only been in the NRL one season?
To be honest, it feels like our first game was only yesterday. Ever since we got the nod in 2005 things have been going very fast and last season seemed to come and go in a heartbeat.
Has the excitement surrounding the move to your new stadium at Skilled Park ensured a similar buzz to your inaugural year?
I think it has. It is a bit of a second honeymoon, but that will quickly dissipate if we don't convert fans to the venue and draw them in with our performances.
We are not under any illusions about where we are at. This new stadium is a great opportunity for us but there is also a great obligation to perform.
What is a realistic expectation for the Titans in 2008?
I don't think anything short of semi-finals will be acceptable. We felt last year we were realistic top-eight hopes and we were on track before that dreaded "D" word, depth, got us.
This year our depth is better and with the under-20s coming online it will allow us to fast-track juniors much quicker. If we don't play finals we'll all be bitterly disappointed."
One of the major challenges you look to be facing this year is player retention, with most of your squad coming off contract. Have you a plan to handle that?
Our plan was always to provide a two-year window that brought stability but also then allowed us to reassess. If we have junior Titans coming through we need the scope to retain them.
We have 15 guys coming off. In some ways that is daunting but the way I see it is that they have a great opportunity to push their cause to stay here.
Some people may disagree, but I think we are in a position of strength. We have created a particularly competitive environment where players want to be there.
There is always market pressure and other clubs may want to come in and take some of those players, and we will lose some. But at the same time we also know we are going to get the absolute best out of them this year.
Do you have a time frame for when you start negotiating?
Not really, but I think we are going to have to make early calls on the key positions we need to strengthen, which is what we did this year.
We said we lacked size and speed and we went out and recruited both. We lost a couple along the way, but that's the way the game works. This year we need to look at some of the junior kids we have coming through.
That is the greatest threat to our current established talent and their prospects of staying here. We are morally obligated to retain our junior talent and that will be a challenge.
But everyone will get a chance to present their case. We won't be making any judgment calls until later in the year when we have a good idea of the areas we want to strengthen.
You seem to be linked to every player coming off contract, notably Israel Folau. Is a guy of that quality and price bracket within range?
We have a lot of guys coming off so that puts us in a strong position to recruit. Israel Folau is an emerging star, but we aren't about to sell the silverware to get him.
He is incredibly talented and he is brilliant for the game and if we were lucky enough to snare him it would be great for rugby league in Queensland.
But under the new rules Melbourne have first chop at him and they have the opportunity to match any option put forward. If he decides to stay down there, then good luck to them.
Being still a fledgling club, do you feel you have to pay overs to attract the best talent?
We never paid overs. Most guys who came to us would have been prepared to take a cut in pay to come here.
When we locked in Preston Campbell, Scott Prince and Luke Bailey, other players wanted to come here. We will be in an even stronger position moving forward when guys see the stability we have, the fact we have a good team, an incredible stadium and a soon-to-be completed $20 million training facility.
http://www.news.com.au
GOLD Coast Titans will launch their second season at their new Robina stadium. Karl deKroo talks to Titans CEO Michael Searle about the challenges ahead.
AS a club how do you compare where you are now to the same time last year?
We are a lot more relaxed. We learnt a lot last year. We were going into the unknown and that made it very difficult.
There is still a fair amount of intensity and excitement this year, but this time we know what is coming and we have a lot to look forward to. We are a much better balanced footy side.
We have managed to acquire both speed and size and I'm excited about what's possible despite so-called experts predicting doom and gloom.
Can you believe you have only been in the NRL one season?
To be honest, it feels like our first game was only yesterday. Ever since we got the nod in 2005 things have been going very fast and last season seemed to come and go in a heartbeat.
Has the excitement surrounding the move to your new stadium at Skilled Park ensured a similar buzz to your inaugural year?
I think it has. It is a bit of a second honeymoon, but that will quickly dissipate if we don't convert fans to the venue and draw them in with our performances.
We are not under any illusions about where we are at. This new stadium is a great opportunity for us but there is also a great obligation to perform.
What is a realistic expectation for the Titans in 2008?
I don't think anything short of semi-finals will be acceptable. We felt last year we were realistic top-eight hopes and we were on track before that dreaded "D" word, depth, got us.
This year our depth is better and with the under-20s coming online it will allow us to fast-track juniors much quicker. If we don't play finals we'll all be bitterly disappointed."
One of the major challenges you look to be facing this year is player retention, with most of your squad coming off contract. Have you a plan to handle that?
Our plan was always to provide a two-year window that brought stability but also then allowed us to reassess. If we have junior Titans coming through we need the scope to retain them.
We have 15 guys coming off. In some ways that is daunting but the way I see it is that they have a great opportunity to push their cause to stay here.
Some people may disagree, but I think we are in a position of strength. We have created a particularly competitive environment where players want to be there.
There is always market pressure and other clubs may want to come in and take some of those players, and we will lose some. But at the same time we also know we are going to get the absolute best out of them this year.
Do you have a time frame for when you start negotiating?
Not really, but I think we are going to have to make early calls on the key positions we need to strengthen, which is what we did this year.
We said we lacked size and speed and we went out and recruited both. We lost a couple along the way, but that's the way the game works. This year we need to look at some of the junior kids we have coming through.
That is the greatest threat to our current established talent and their prospects of staying here. We are morally obligated to retain our junior talent and that will be a challenge.
But everyone will get a chance to present their case. We won't be making any judgment calls until later in the year when we have a good idea of the areas we want to strengthen.
You seem to be linked to every player coming off contract, notably Israel Folau. Is a guy of that quality and price bracket within range?
We have a lot of guys coming off so that puts us in a strong position to recruit. Israel Folau is an emerging star, but we aren't about to sell the silverware to get him.
He is incredibly talented and he is brilliant for the game and if we were lucky enough to snare him it would be great for rugby league in Queensland.
But under the new rules Melbourne have first chop at him and they have the opportunity to match any option put forward. If he decides to stay down there, then good luck to them.
Being still a fledgling club, do you feel you have to pay overs to attract the best talent?
We never paid overs. Most guys who came to us would have been prepared to take a cut in pay to come here.
When we locked in Preston Campbell, Scott Prince and Luke Bailey, other players wanted to come here. We will be in an even stronger position moving forward when guys see the stability we have, the fact we have a good team, an incredible stadium and a soon-to-be completed $20 million training facility.
http://www.news.com.au