Round 6 TITANS vs BRONCOS

[DIEHARD]

469

TITANS vs BRONCOS

Friday 11 April, 07:40 PM(local), Robina Stadium


<div class="lineup">
<br>

<table class="rugbyleague-lineups">
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">1</span><span title="David Mead">David Mead</span></td>
<td class="player-number">FB</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Ben Barba">Ben Barba</span><span class="player-no">1</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">2</span><span title="Kevin Gordon">Kevin Gordon</span></td>
<td class="player-number">W</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Daniel Vidot">Daniel Vidot</span><span class="player-no">2</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">3</span><span title="Maurice Blair">Maurice Blair</span></td>
<td class="player-number">C</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Jack Reed">Jack Reed</span><span class="player-no">3</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">4</span><span title="Brad Takairangi">Brad Takairangi</span></td>
<td class="player-number">C</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Justin Hodges">Justin Hodges</span><span class="player-no">4</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">5</span><span title="Anthony Don">Anthony Don</span></td>
<td class="player-number">W</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Dale Copley">Dale Copley</span><span class="player-no">5</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">6</span><span title="Aidan Sezer">Aidan Sezer</span></td>
<td class="player-number">5/8</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Josh Hoffman">Josh Hoffman</span><span class="player-no">6</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">7</span><span title="Albert Kelly">Albert Kelly</span></td>
<td class="player-number">HB</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Ben Hunt">Ben Hunt</span><span class="player-no">7</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">8</span><span title="Luke Douglas">Luke Douglas</span></td>
<td class="player-number">P</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Josh McGuire">Josh McGuire</span><span class="player-no">8</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">9</span><span title="Beau Falloon">Beau Falloon</span></td>
<td class="player-number">H</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Andrew McCullough">A. McCullough</span><span class="player-no">9</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">10</span><span title="Nate Myles">Nate Myles</span></td>
<td class="player-number">P</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Corey Parker">Corey Parker</span><span class="player-no">10</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">11</span><span title="Greg Bird">Greg Bird</span></td>
<td class="player-number">2R</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Alex Glenn">Alex Glenn</span><span class="player-no">11</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">12</span><span title="Dave Taylor">Dave Taylor</span></td>
<td class="player-number">2R</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Sam Thaiday">Sam Thaiday</span><span class="player-no">12</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">13</span><span title="Ashley Harrison">Ashley Harrison</span></td>
<td class="player-number">L</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Matt Gillett">Matt Gillett</span><span class="player-no">13</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-substitutes-header">
<th class="substitues" colspan="3"><div class="omit-home">&nbsp;</div><div class="inter"><h3>Interchange</h3></div><div class="omit-away">(1 to be omitted)</div></th>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">14</span><span title="Matthew White">Matthew White</span></td>
<td class="player-number">INT</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Martin Kennedy">Martin Kennedy</span><span class="player-no">14</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">15</span><span title="Luke Bailey">Luke Bailey</span></td>
<td class="player-number">INT</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Todd Lowrie">Todd Lowrie</span><span class="player-no">15</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">16</span><span title="Mark Minichiello">M. Minichiello</span></td>
<td class="player-number">INT</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Ben Hannant">Ben Hannant</span><span class="player-no">16</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no">17</span><span title="Paul Carter">Paul Carter</span></td>
<td class="player-number">INT</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Corey Oates">Corey Oates</span><span class="player-no">17</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="lineup-players">
<td class="home-player"><span class="player-no"></span><span title=" "></span></td>
<td class="player-number">INT</td>
<td class="away-player"><span title="Jarrod Wallace">Jarrod Wallace</span><span class="player-no">18</span></td>
</tr>
</table>

</div>

[DIEHARD]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/t1.0-9/10155107_10152302570194631_1107386595_n.png


Each year we embark on a trip down the M1 Highway to the Gold Coast to get behind our Broncos team v Titans at this away game.
Last year we had over 100 enthusiastic and vocal members join us on a private coach to Robina Stadium.
Not only do you have the convenience of match tickets and transport already organised, but you get to spend the trip with other like-minded members...

Members Road Trip – Round 6 v Titans, Robina Stadium, Gold Coast
Date: Friday 11 April 2014
Departure: Between 4.45pm-5.30pm (please see booking form for options) from the Broncos Leagues Club or Daisy Hill
Cost: $50 per Adult, $35 per Junior (4-14 years)
RSVP: 5pm Tuesday 8 April 2014

Includes:
- Game day ticket in the Away Supporters Bay
- Private coach transport to and from the game
- Merchandise item to help show your group support at the game
- Automatic entry in the draw to win a signed 2014 Broncos jersey.

Click here for the booking form - http://bit.ly/1dGKIun
OR please call 1300 46 2766 for any questions

[DIEHARD]

Good to see the Broncos doing something to boost crowds and atmosphere and enhancing the Derby.

[DIEHARD]

Bit of a worry when the BUY TICKETS button for this game on the Broncos website... doesn't work.


http://d35kvm5iuwjt9t.cloudfront.net/dbimages/sfx118549.jpg (http://premier.ticketek.com.au/shows/Show.aspx?sh=TIT0614)
CLICK TO BUY

[DIEHARD]

Looks like seats and sections are slowly getting snapped up. Hope we can get a strong crowd with good weather.

[TITAN PETE]

Weather permitting we should get close to 25k for Friday but the forcast is for rain all week including Friday

[DavidBouveng]

Weather permitting we should get close to 25k for Friday but the forcast is for rain all week including Friday

when it rained against cowboys PETE, alot of ppl dashed up to the empty corporate area. is that normal or should i bring a poncho next time?

[Mexican titan]

when it rained against cowboys PETE, alot of ppl dashed up to the empty corporate area. is that normal or should i bring a poncho next time?

I would bring a poncho as that area will probably not be empty.

[DIEHARD]

The NRL needs to stockpile pounchos. I don't care if they even have a sponsor on it to help cover costs.

But I hate seeing rugby league fans soaking wet. We need to show a duty of care to them. Maybe even slap some club colours and logos on them.

Do it!

[DavidBouveng]

I would bring a poncho as that area will probably not be empty.

ill also make sure my ticket is only printed once this week...

your in my area. did you see a minor commotion about 10 minutes into the cows game? some people having a disagreement about a seat down the front?

[Squinter98]

If tighe is out than what happens? Mead was great at the back today. Zillman return to centre, mead stays no.1? Thoughts?

[Mexican titan]

ill also make sure my ticket is only printed once this week...

your in my area. did you see a minor commotion about 10 minutes into the cows game? some people having a disagreement about a seat down the front?

No mate I didn't. I am in row 28 of section 8 and it is hard to see the front rows unless you stand up. One of my kids had his Sports Ears and I got distracted by the snake episode early as he heard that through the tv commentary but didn't see any carry on about seats.

[Mexican titan]

If tighe is out than what happens? Mead was great at the back today. Zillman return to centre, mead stays no.1? Thoughts?

Good question. I think Zillman IF he must be in the side it is at fullback. Whoever plays Centre must be able to smash Hodges!:fight:

[DavidBouveng]

No mate I didn't. I am in row 28 of section 8 and it is hard to see the front rows unless you stand up. One of my kids had his Sports Ears and I got distracted by the snake episode early as he heard that through the tv commentary but didn't see any carry on about seats.

mmm, i must have u confused. maybe bayside titan is in my section. i think Pete is too.

[TITAN PETE]

mmm, i must have u confused. maybe bayside titan is in my section. i think Pete is too.

I'm in row 6 left side of the tunnel , I'm in a group of 16 now , we are in rows 5,6 & 7

[DavidBouveng]

I'm in row 6 left side of the tunnel , I'm in a group of 16 now , we are in rows 5,6 & 7

yeah im in 6 left side of tunnel. row 2. on about the 45 line. carty opens his little gate and bangs into my leg at half time. i think i might be just ahead of you. some people had there memebers cards printed with my numbers on them..and they arrived first so i was trying to ask them to move, but i was confused, then asked some lady if i had hers...she sternly told me she had been there 6 years and i wrong... my head was spinning i tell you

[TITAN PETE]

yeah im in 6 left side of tunnel. row 2. on about the 45 line. carty opens his little gate and bangs into my leg at half time. i think i might be just ahead of you. some people had there memebers cards printed with my numbers on them..and they arrived first so i was trying to ask them to move, but i was confused, then asked some lady if i had hers...she sternly told me she had been there 6 years and i wrong... my head was spinning i tell you

I promise u will know where I sit come Friday night :thumbsup:

[DavidBouveng]

I promise u will know where I sit come Friday night :thumbsup:

i heard u say 25k and meyn tweeted it too....i think 20k plus considering the crowds so far will be good. unless we get **** tonnes of broncs fans.

[DIEHARD]

It would be great to see 25,000 rocking Robina!

[Supergoose]

If there was ever a time to play Zillman at left centre this is it. I don think we're going to have any more luck with Blair or Zillman at left centre against Hodges. We just need Birdy to help them out. Some great match-ups this week. Our wingers are going to have their hands full as Vidot and Copley have been excellent so far this season. Let's hope that the backlne improvement was structural and not just because Blair was there instead of Sezer. Forward battle is going to be epic. Need to control Parker and Thaiday who have been terrific this season. We really need James in there ahead it White or Bailey just to give us a bit more intimidation. Douglas has been good this season so if we can stop the Broncos roll forward it'll go along way to us winning. In saying that they've been pretty good and we'll need to take our chances while limitin theirs which isn't something we've been good at despit our lofty position atop the table.

[CoastSportsFan]

1st v 3rd. This clash suddenly becomes very important. Anyone else think it might sell out?

[DIEHARD]

So this is Luke Douglas' 200th and Kevin Gordon's 100th. (I think)

[gotitans101_]

Broncos have a full team with an extra 2 days to prepare.

We'll probably be missing Falloon as well after that dangerous tackle yesterday which is a big loss.

[Geeman]

So this is Luke Douglas' 200th and Kevin Gordon's 100th. (I think)

Pretty sure I heard that in commentary against Storm

[K2G]

Meyn tweeted that he's hearing the match review committee have cleared falloon.
Hope so.

[Mexican titan]

1st v 3rd. This clash suddenly becomes very important. Anyone else think it might sell out?

I don't think it will sell out but it will draw more than the 16,593 that watched the AFL derby on the Coast this weekend. That will put a few back in their box for a while.

[C-Whiz]

I never really expected to win in Melbourne TBH, but I always look forward to beating the Broncos, and I think this will show us where we really are at the moment. Brisbane are finding some consistency now, but are not at their best and like the Storm game, this is a good chance to roll them.

If we get the 2 points out of this, I think everyone will have to stand up and take notice of the Titans. No more "under the radar", if we win this we will deservedly be seen as a genuine threat.

[C-Whiz]

Good to see the Broncos doing something to boost crowds and atmosphere and enhancing the Derby.Yes, this does look like an excellent idea to get a good vibe going heading to an away game. Then they can all console each other and blame the refs when the buses leave 10 minutes before full time to take them home again.


The NRL needs to stockpile pounchos. I don't care if they even have a sponsor on it to help cover costs.

But I hate seeing rugby league fans soaking wet. We need to show a duty of care to them.LOL, I agree that clubs could sell ponchos in club colours, but maybe people can start taking care/responsibility for themselves. I did see Freddy on the Sunday footy show in what appeared to be a Tigers poncho. I'd buy a Titans poncho if there was/is such a thing.

[TITAN PETE]

I never really expected to win in Melbourne TBH, but I always look forward to beating the Broncos, and I think this will show us where we really are at the moment. Brisbane are finding some consistency now, but are not at their best and like the Storm game, this is a good chance to roll them.

If we get the 2 points out of this, I think everyone will have to stand up and take notice of the Titans. No more "under the radar", if we win this we will deservedly be seen as a genuine threat.

Very important match , a win will earn something this club has had little of in the past few years & deservedly so Respect

Are u back in Oz Whiz ?

[C-Whiz]

Very important match , a win will earn something this club has had little of in the past few years & deservedly so Respect

Are u back in Oz Whiz ?Yes mate, got back a few weeks ago, went to Cows game and will be there to claim bragging rights on Friday night. :thumbsup:

[DIEHARD]

PAX update, over 15,000 on Monday. Looks promising.

[TITAN PETE]

PAX update, over 15,000 on Monday. Looks promising.

25k is on the cards , I will get a update from the Club on Thursday

[C-Whiz]

For those fans who have flags and banners, make sure we all take them and wave them proudly and wash out those Broncos hanky-wavers...

[TITAN FAN]

NRL team round five
James playing in the premier league division, was really hoping he would be good to go against the donkeys

[DIEHARD]

For those fans who have flags and banners, make sure we all take them and wave them proudly and wash out those Broncos hanky-wavers...

Absolutely. Time to fill the stadium with Titans flags!

[Titanic]

If we can't draw a crowd this week our marketing people should fall on their ipads.

[TITAN PETE]

Broncos
1 Ben Barba
2 Daniel Vidot
3 Jack Reed
4 Justin Hodges (c)
5 Dale Copley
6 Josh Hoffman
7 Ben Hunt
8 Josh McGuire
9 Andrew McCullough
10 Corey Parker (c)
11 Alex Glenn
12 Sam Thaiday
13 Matt Gillett

Interchange
14 Martin Kennedy
15 Todd Lowrie
16 Ben Hannant
17 Corey Oates
18 Jarrod Wallace

Coach: Anthony Griffin

[Squinter98]

The Titans have named a 'Likely' Team to play the Broncos on Friday with doubt over Aiden Sezer and William Zillman.
1 - David Mead

2 - Kevin Gordon

3 - Maurice Blair

4 – Brad Takairangi

5 – Anthony Don

6 - Aidan Sezer

7 - Albert Kelly

8 - Luke Douglas

9 - Beau Falloon

10 - Nate Myles (capt)

11 - Greg Bird (capt)

12 – David Taylor

13 - Ashley Harrison



INTERCHANGE

14 - Matthew White

15 - Luke Bailey

16 - Mark Minichiello

17 - Paul Carter

[indoallstars]

cmon Titans....crush some donkey skulls

[Titanic]

I just watched the replay of last week's game again and I must say that Blair continuously telling Bird to get deeper was a revelation ... this should be a cracker of a game and please nobody mention milestones until after the event, please.

[DIEHARD]

I just watched the replay of last week's game again and I must say that Blair continuously telling Bird to get deeper was a revelation ... this should be a cracker of a game and please nobody mention milestones until after the event, please.

Anyone that mentions a milestone gets banned. All agree? LOL

[DavidBouveng]

I just watched the replay of last week's game again and I must say that Blair continuously telling Bird to get deeper was a revelation ... this should be a cracker of a game and please nobody mention milestones until after the event, please.

mate that was the theme of the posting during the game. Blair keeping us deep and moving it wide. sometimes it was only subtle, but it only needed to be. When kevvie lobbed that ball up to him, he took one step and passed to Tighe rather than crab across and crowd him.

like most of my junior coaches would appreciate, he let the ball do the work

[toddythetitan]

Kevin Gordon said in the paper now that he's got a couple he will get more tries so please just Get It to gordon

[Julius Sezer]

Blair knows what to do because he learnt his trade at the Storms under Craig Bellamy. It goes to show the huge difference in quality between Bellamy and Cartwright

[TITAN PETE]

Barba ready for fiery Titan welcome
By Matt Harris, Queensland Correspondent
NRL.com
8:15am Wed 09th April, 2014



It's his second Queensland derby in the space of five weeks but Broncos fullback Ben Barba says he has seen enough on television to know that a Titans showdown brings with it plenty of fire and brimstone.

The last time these two teams met the Titans were accused of 'losing the plot' in the first half with a string of penalties for high tackles and late shots that prompted Brisbane coach Anthony Griffin to say "it was like a throw-back to the '70s".

With the Titans flying high on the top of the table and the Broncos surprising many with their strong start to the season, it shapes as one of the most highly anticipated south-east Queensland derbies in a number of years and Barba is expecting an intense contest.

"I didn't hear too much about the games when I was in Sydney, but I always watched the games (between the Broncos and Titans)," Barba said.

"There was one [game] on upstairs before playing on Fox Sports so I got to sit there and watch that one and it was a pretty fiery clash.

"It'll be a great game this Friday and it makes it even better with them coming first and us in third (position) so all the boys are looking forward to it.

"We definitely have to pick ourselves up from last week and be up for this game because it won't be an easy challenge going down there."

The Broncos have been boosted for the Titans clash with star centre Justin Hodges set to start having come off the bench in his return from an achilles injury last Friday night against the Eels.

Hodges spent the first 25 minutes of their 25-18 loss watching from the pine and admits the Broncos took the Eels lightly, a mistake that won't be repeated on the Gold Coast.

"The boys underestimated Parra' to be honest," Hodges said.

"They are a great side and have some quality players, so it just goes to show that we weren't on our game and they really hurt us there [as a result]."

Returning to the field after almost eight months out with injury, the 31-year-old stated that his troubled achilles had passed its first rigorous test with flying colours.

"It pulled up a lot better than I expected. Obviously it was a little bit sore after the game but the next morning it was fine," he said.

"I think this time I'll start (against the Titans) and maybe come off a bit early, but we'll see what happens."

Hodges has enjoyed some reasonable success against the Titans since their inception into the NRL in 2007, scoring four tries, while the Broncos have won seven out of the 11 clashes when the veteran centre has played.

The overall head-to-head battle sees the Broncos well on top of their South East Queensland rivals, winning 11 of the 15 clashes and averaging 24.1 points per game compared to the Titans who average 17.3 points against their bigger brother.

Brisbane have won four out of the seven clashes played at Robina and despite the statistics favouring the away team, Hodges says the Broncos will be ready and raring to go from the opening whistle.

"It's the Queensland derby so it's a massive game for us. We're coming off a loss and they're at the top of the table," he said.

"They are coming off a big win against Melbourne down there which is very hard to do and their confidence is sky-high so we have got to be on our game.

"They'll be pretty hard to beat on their home turf."

[

[gotitans101_]

I must admit, I had my doubts about Blair in the halves but he proved me wrong on Sunday. It is really good that we have some depth in that position.

[TITAN PETE]

Titans v Broncos preview
By Tony Webeck, Chief Queensland Correspondent
NRL.com
11:00am Wed 09th April, 2014




Titans v Broncos
Cbus Super Stadium
Friday 7.40pm

They have made fewer line breaks than any other team in the competition, they have made more errors than any other team, they rank second to bottom for incomplete sets, are third worst at missing tackles and, ladies and gentlemen, the Gold Coast Titans are your competition leaders after five weeks of the 2014 Telstra Premiership.

As if tipsters needed any further proof that it has been a topsy-turvy start to the season that the Titans can be outright competition leaders despite having a negative points differential is a 60-year phenomenon in the making.

Stats gurus trawled the record books last weekend and discovered that the last time a side led the competition outright despite their for-and-against being on the red side of the ledger was Canterbury way back in Round 16, 1953. If there's a better stat to come out of the 2014 season I can't wait to hear it.

A prominent journalist in Brisbane couldn't resist the juicy odds on offer of North Queensland being the best performed Queensland side this season yet a little over a month later we have the table-topping Titans hosting the third-placed Broncos who have enjoyed a resurgence of their own.

Yes, there are still 21 weeks before our man does his dough but it sets up a salivating south-east Queensland showdown for two sets of fans who have had little to get excited about for the past two seasons.

While the Titans have slogged their way to the top of the mountain with wins of twelve, six, two and one point, the Broncos have been enterprising even in defeat in recent weeks as the two Bens, Hunt and Barba, grow in confidence and Josh Hoffman adjusts to life as a five-eighth.

The smallest crowd that has assembled to watch these teams do battle since the Titans' inception in 2007 is 20,067; even the Cbus Super Snake will need a ticket to get in this Friday night.

Watch Out Broncos: Did we see in Sunday's upset win over the Storm the emergence of a new David Taylor? There were only two offloads and three tackle breaks but his work rate was up significantly on what would be considered normal output for the 'Coal Train'. His 191.4 metres against the Storm was almost 50 metres better than his previous best so far in 2014 and is more in line with the numbers he was delivering at the back end of 2014.

Playing against the club that handed him his NRL debut as a 17-year-old, there is sure to be some extra sting in the Taylor charges and if he can reproduce the sheer numbers that he did against Melbourne, the Broncos will have a hard time keeping him under wraps for 80 minutes.


Watch Out Titans: It took little more than 15 minutes for Justin Hodges to dispel any notion that a second long-term achilles injury would in any way temper his brilliance.

The Broncos have done a marvellous job to start the season in the fashion that they have without their backline talisman but with Hodges now back in the centres and not coming off the bench they are a whole lot more threatening on the right side of the field.

In his return from an eight-month layoff, Hodges laid on a try for Dale Copley by single-handedly dismantling the Parramatta left-edge defence and while the rest of his side's attack stuttered, Hodges looked capable of breaking the Eels apart with almost every touch of the footy.

He ran for 126 metres, had three offloads, a try assist and a line break assist but, most importantly, he got through it mentally unscathed and ready for more.

Plays To Watch: His one-handed way of carrying the footy may not do good things for coach John Cartwright's stress levels but the introduction of Brad Takairangi back into the Titans centres in the past two weeks has added an extra dimension to their attack.

Keeping his long arms out of the reach of defenders, Takairangi has the ability to draw opposition wingers in off their wing in an attempt to shut him down, which is almost precisely when he offloads to his outside support. Look for Takairangi to unsettle the Broncos' defence with the ever-threatening offload.

The major area of concern for the Titans defence will be a fully-stocked Brisbane right-side attack now that Hodges has been reintroduced into the mix.

Ben Hunt continues to grow in confidence and as he spends the majority of the time on the right he now has a glut of choices on his outside. Does he hit a rampaging Matt Gillett back on the angle? Does he release Ben Barba out the back? Or does he hit Hodges with a cut-out pass and let the big man do his thing with room to move?

If they can plant those thoughts in the minds of the Titans defenders, a good part of the battle is already won.


Where It Will Be Won: Execution in attack has been difficult for both of these teams early in the season and with both displaying impressive defensive resolve it will come down to which team can take advantage of what may be limited opportunities.

Opportunities will be presented to the team that can dominate field position and possession and that often comes down to discipline. Only one team – the Wests Tigers – have conceded more penalties than the Titans through five rounds while the Broncos are the best behaved team in the competition having given away just 30.

The team that finishes on the positive side of the penalty ledger will go a long way to ensuring the scoreboard is similarly weighted in their favour.

The History: Played 15; Titans 4, Broncos 11. There have been lean pickings for the Titans in recent years with just one win from their past nine encounters, including back-to-back hidings dished out by the Broncos last season, first a 32-12 win in Round 5 and then a 32-6 shellacking in Round 10. But they're the exception to the rule; on six occasions only eight points or less has separated them at full-time.

What Are The Odds: The Broncos are the $1.68 favourites with Sportsbet.com.au, with the Titans the $2.15 outsiders but the punters give the Gold Coast a real shot. Some 55 per cent of the money has been on Brisbane. In terms of bets though there’s been more bets on the Titans.

Match Officials: Referees – Shayne Hayne & Chris James; Touch Judges – Russell Turner & Chris Butler; Video Referees – Luke Phillips & Paul Mellor.

Televised: Channel Nine – Live 7.30pm (Qld); Delayed 9.30pm (NSW).

The Way We See It: With an injury cloud continuing to hang over Titans five-eighth Aidan Sezer and the loss of Brad Tighe with a shoulder injury for a month, the Gold Coast again head into a game with a reshuffled backline. But they seem to thrive on adversity and will adopt a gritty, no-frills approach if there are a number of new combinations in play. The Broncos look a lot more settled with the return of Hodges and have a stranglehold on the Titans in recent years. The response of the Gold Coast fans to their team sitting on top of the table will be of significance because their team may need to feed off their energy. The short turnaround may hurt the home side; the Broncos by four points.

[DIEHARD]

Broncos Must Focus For Titans

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[DIEHARD]

Titans Task A Big One

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The NRMA Insurance Broncos only have to take a look at the Gold Coast's last 'kill' to realise how good the Titans are going.

The 28-26 upset win over the Storm in Melbourne last Sunday is all the evidence needed.

The Broncos know how hard it is to get a win at the home of the Storm.

While the Broncos beat the Storm on the opening day of AAMI Park back in 2010, to find the next victory in Melbourne you have to go back over a decade to find a golden-point win in 2003.

It is proof of how well the ladder-leading Titans are going and how hard the Broncos' job will be to beat them on the Gold Coast on Friday night, said Justin Hodges.

"It is going to be a massive game for us," he said.

"They are top of the table and playing some great footy.

"They had a big win against Melbourne down there last weekend, which is very hard to do.

"We have a big rise in opponents this week."

Hodges made a successful return from a long lay off with a lower leg injury last week, coming on after 20 minutes in the 25-18 loss to the Eels.

He has pulled up well and is ready for 80 minutes against the Titans.

"I was pretty nervous for the first game back," he said.

"The first 20 minutes is pretty quick so I stayed out of that and came on when everyone was a bit fatigued.

"I went out there and played 60 minutes so I am feeling confident.

"It pulled up a lot better than expected.

"It was sore after the game but felt fine the next day.

"I'll have another run this week and get ready for game two."

http://www.broncos.com.au/

[TITAN PETE]

Titans star wary of Barba-watching
By Tony Webeck, Chief Queensland Correspondent
NRL.com
7:00am Thu 10th April, 2014



As a kid he would marvel at the long-range tryscoring exploits of some of the game's great entertainers but Titans fullback David Mead insists he won't be a passive spectator if his opposite number, Ben Barba, breaks free on Friday night.

While Barba came under fire for his performance for the Broncos in last week's loss to the Eels and is yet to break his try-scoring drought for his new club, Mead was superb against Melbourne in his second effort filling in at the back for William Zillman.

There is the chance that Zillman could return from a hamstring injury in Friday night's blockbuster at Cbus Super Stadium but the performances of both Mead and winger Anthony Don may cause coach John Cartwright to err on the side of caution.

It will be a night of milestones on the Gold Coast as the table-topping Titans celebrate the 200th NRL game for Luke Douglas and also Kevin Gordon's 100th game for the club.

Opposing Storm superstar Billy Slater last Sunday, Mead scored a try, ran for 144 metres and came up with some critical plays at the Titans' defensive side of the field and drew high praise from his coach following the two-point win.

Since being given the opportunity to play fullback at the end of last season and also for Papua New Guinea at the World Cup, Mead has gone to school on the way the likes of Slater and Manly's Brett Stewart approach their work. Like all league fans he was captivated by Barba's displays in 2012 but does not want to see a return to that type of form on Friday night.

"I definitely enjoyed watching how he played in 2012 when he had that freak year but in saying that I'm going into the game 100 per cent focused on my job and doing it the best I can so our team can get the result," Mead said. "I can't get too caught up watching him do what he does.

"Obviously you've got to be aware of the type of player he is and what he can do so we've got to try and shut him down.

"During the week we have a look at the different teams' strengths and weaknesses and for the Broncos their strengths are having Benny Barba on the left and Justin Hodges is back from injury and showed what he is capable of doing and Matt Gillett, we've got to really watch him as well."

In addition to the extra involvement and ability to pop up when try-scoring opportunities present themselves on any part of the field, Mead says he is enjoying the extra responsibility that comes with wearing the No.1 jersey.

Whether it's identifying a shortness in the defensive line, a weakness in the opposition or trying to predict the areas that opposition kickers are targeting, the 25-year-old is relishing being more engaged than he normally is on the wing.

"I think it's having more control in the game. Having a look at the opposition to see where their weakest point is or which part of the field to attack, having that control is what I find a lot more attractive than playing on the wing," he said.

"I haven't really played much fullback so I looked at Billy Slater and Brett Stewart, those types of players, I look at some of their clips and see what they do really well and try to use their type of game-plan in my game. Obviously I haven't had much of a chance to use that but watching them definitely helps my game.

"You've definitely got to do all your study on the kickers in the game because they're very different and kick to different parts of the field.

"You've just got to study each kicker differently every week and we certainly do our homework, myself and the two wingers, to make sure we're bringing the ball back as far as we can to help all the forwards out."

Although he is six games short of joining him in the Titans' 100 club, Mead and Gordon are dead level on 52 apiece as Gold Coast's all-time leading try-scorers but the part-time custodian said there won't be any flamboyant celebrations to match his boyhood idols should he edge in front against the Broncos.

"Guys like Nathan Blacklock, Anthony Mundine and Steve Renouf, mainly because of the long-range tries they used to score and the entertainment they provided," Mead said of the players he admired growing up.

"They'd do the post-try celebrations so those guys I really enjoyed watching.

"[Titans coach John Cartwright] hasn't banned [post-try celebrations] but I don't really have any up my sleeve just yet. We'll see how the year pans out."

[Tamwelg]

Vbookie Round 6 betting Titans vs Broncos

[Tamwelg]

Vbookie Round 6 betting Titans vs Broncos

That didn't work. I'll try again.

[Tamwelg]

Vbookie Round 6 betting Titans vs Broncos

[TITAN PETE]

Titans boss Graham Annesley is urging Titans fans to show their support and fill the stands
PETER BADEL GOLD COAST BULLETIN APRIL 10, 2014 11:25AM


TITANS boss Graham Annesley has appealed to the Gold Coast’s flagging supporter base to fill Cbus Super Stadium for the NRL derby with the Broncos tomorrow night.

Despite the Titans’ surge to the top of the table, the high flyers have an average crowd of only 10,760 after two home games this season.

Weather extremes have been blamed for the figures. The Titans attracted 12,038 fans in oppressive heat for their Round 2 clash with the Tigers, while 9482 braved the wet to watch the Gold Coast’s Monday Night Football defeat of the Cowboys.

Last season the Titans posted a crowd average of 14,570, which was a worrying 47 per cent decrease on the 21,618 *average in their maiden year at Robina in 2008.

Titans crowds have been a concern for some time but *Annesley said a Queensland showdown with the Broncos would be a true barometer of the club’s support.

“This is our biggest game of the year in terms of potential crowds at home,” Annesley said. “We have a couple of good games coming up later in the year but the local derby is always massive.

“We are sitting at the top of the ladder and the Broncos are two points behind so it is virtually a top-of-the-table clash

“With both teams in winning form there is no reason why we shouldn’t have a great turnout subject to reasonable weather.

“An excellent result would be a full house. My objective is to get us as close to a full house as possible.

“Both teams are playing well enough for it to be an *attractive game for fans to make the extra effort. Hopefully they will.”

Annesley said the Titans needed to attract 15,000 for a reasonable return but insisted it was too early to be hitting the panic button.

“We’ve only had two home games,” he said.

“I wouldn’t like to put an exact figure on our break-even because it can vary depending on the packages, corporates and ticket-types we sell. We’d been looking for a crowd in *excess of around 15,000 to have a reasonable return. ”

[CoastSportsFan]

Hey @TITAN PETE, any pax update for this game?

[DIEHARD]

Vbookie Round 6 betting Titans vs Broncos

I wagered a whopping 20 titaniumoneroos on the Titans beating the Broncos.

[Titanic]

I wagered a whopping 20 titaniumoneroos on the Titans beating the Broncos.
I bet my full 500 ... why? because we win this and my season is made and if we don't then I don't care.

[DIEHARD]

I bet my full 500 ... why? because we win this and my season is made and if we don't then I don't care.

You can retire to vfiji

[Bayside Titan]

Just heard that about 18k pre sold at the minute.

[C-Whiz]

You can retire to vfiji :laugh: :thumbsup:

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I bet my full 500 ... why? because we win this and my season is made and if we don't then I don't care.
I never got a chance to put mine on last week. I was gonna put all 500 on us against the Storm. Can I still get the payout anyway, because it's what i was really gonna do. Honest. :tongue:

[TITAN PETE]

Ticket sales in the 19k mark so we'll get over 20k can only hope for a massive walk up to get close to 25k

[DIEHARD]

If the weather is good it'll encourage a good walk up.

[Toads]

Being a Prime Time Friday night game, and good weather as Diehard mentioned. That should pull another 2-3000 punters. :)

[GCT_89]

22,000 is my prediction....

[C-Whiz]

23, 147.

Hey Tam, how about we have a comp, closest guess to each home crowd win 100 vBookie titaniumoneroos.

[DIEHARD]

23, 147.

Hey Tam, how about we have a comp, closest guess to each home crowd win 100 vBookie titaniumoneroos.

Hey that's a great idea.

[Tamwelg]

23, 147.

Hey Tam, how about we have a comp, closest guess to each home crowd win 100 vBookie titaniumoneroos.

great idea we can look at doing something with the thumbs up each week and a few other tyings you've given me some ideas.

[DIEHARD]

Games like this really do excite the fanbases. They bring many back that have slipped away. I hope our performance tonight means we can keep them hooked.

[Coaster]

Games like this really do excite the fanbases. They bring many back that have slipped away. I hope our performance tonight means we can keep them hooked.

This is the test.
The Broncos will turn up to play, will the Titans?

Or will they go into the game with the wrong mindset like they have have few years and embarrassed there fan base.

[Toads]

Well, it appears (to me) the Titans play most of their best games away from home, hopefully this isn't the case tonight. They'll have to deliver the form of the 09-10 squad if they want claw back some Fan Base. Tonight's game is probably the most detrimental game of the year in that aspect..

Here's hoping they don't disappoint.

[TITAN PETE]

Taylor battles his attacking urges
By Tony Webeck, Chief Queensland Correspondent
NRL.com
6:00am Fri 11th April, 2014

Getting noticed in the school playground is nothing new for Titans behemoth Dave Taylor.

When he made his NRL debut for the Brisbane Broncos as a 17-year-old still enrolled at St Brendan's College at Yeppoon, kids would invariably talk in hushed tones as he went between classes.

When he travelled to footy carnivals his reputation would often precede his enormous frame as high school kids did their best to mentally overcome the prospect of tackling someone who had already played alongside Origin players such as Shane Webcke, Brad Thorn, Dane Carlaw and Corey Parker.

These days, Taylor has to work his way past the Year 7 kids who are in awe at his mere presence as he does his daddy duty of picking up eldest daughter Macie from school.

It's Macie's first year of school on the Gold Coast and her proud dad is only too happy to be on pick-up duty when training commitments at the Titans allow.

"I do it whenever I finish early; I'd do it every day if I could," Taylor tells NRL.com. "It's quite an amazing thing, seeing your little girl run off for her first day of school and playing with the other kids.

"The kids there love it when I go for school pick-up. I've got to walk past the Year 7 room and they're the ones that sort of know what footy is and who every player is so I get held up a little bit there, going past that classroom, but they love it.

"It's funny when you're walking through the school grounds, you can always hear little whispers – 'That's him, that's him' – and they always walk past and say, 'Hello Mr Dave Taylor.' It's pretty awesome to be able to bring joy to people's lives like that.

"They probably go home and tell their parents that a Titans player came and picked their daughter up from school and hopefully a few of them can start rugby league that way."

Blessed with a rare mix of size, speed and skill, Taylor has had to become accustomed to expectation almost from the time he started playing back in Blackwater.

When he runs out against his old club, the Broncos, on Friday night, there will be a mix of fans and detractors in the stands, those hoping to see the power and commitment that took him to a solitary Test jersey in 2012 and those wondering why he doesn't do it more often.

Due to turn 26 in July, Taylor displayed the type of destruction he can cause by simply tucking the ball under the arm and crashing into the defence at the back-
end of the 2013 season and again last week against Melbourne but admits the attacking urges – he regularly kicks field goals from beyond the 40-metre line at training – are sometimes hard to suppress.

"'Alby' (Titans half Albert Kelly) got me with one on the weekend," Taylor said of an offload late in the game against North Queensland in Round 4 that handed possession over to the Cowboys. "He screamed out and I got a little bit too excited and threw that ball and you get a big wake-up call when you do stuff like that.

"I had a couple of little errors in the game which I was quite disappointed in and I know that if I just run hard and run straight that everything else will be taken care of."

Titans hooker Beau Falloon has marvelled at the skills of his giant teammate first at South Sydney and now on the Gold Coast. He believes finding the balance between when to attack and when to play it safe is the key to getting the most valuable contribution from their six-time Origin representative.

"That's the key with him, the balance of when to offload and when not to," Falloon says. "'Carty' (Titans coach John Cartwright) just wants him getting the ball and running hard and playing the ball quick for our roll-ons. He's got that skill but it's just about the balance of when to use it and when not to.

"He can start our sets and he can also break a game wide open. We saw at the back-end of last year how important he was for us and that game against Melbourne last year, he really opened the game right up for us and played probably his best game of the season."

Just five players remain from the last Broncos team that Taylor played in back in 2009 and when the Brisbane boys come to town he is intent on atoning for some ill-disciplined play the last time the two sides met in Round 10 last year.

The Titans conceded eight penalties in the opening 30 minutes and things didn't improve once Taylor was introduced from the bench.

"Last year was just a shemozzle with penalties. We got hammered; I think we had 12 in the first half or something like that so that was pretty crazy," Taylor recalls.

"I was sitting on the sideline and I was just getting crankier and crankier just seeing the penalty count go up and when I went on... I think the ref already had a short fuse and one or two silly things from me and the penalty count went up a little bit more.

"Hopefully we can have a good game with no penalties, just a fast-flowing game."

[ozynorts]

Ok trying to do my tips and want to know if anyone has the inside word on Sezer? Will he play or not?

[Tamwelg]

Ok trying to do my tips and want to know if anyone has the inside word on Sezer? Will he play or not?

I heard he got through training fine yesterday and will be playing.

[Titanic]

Anybody like Sezer at left centre with that big step outside Blair?

[Bayside Titan]

This is the test.
The Broncos will turn up to play, will the Titans?

Or will they go into the game with the wrong mindset like they have have few years and embarrassed there fan base.

Agree with you there Coaster.

IMO this is our game of the season is relation to crowds to home games and if the team has what it takes to win the comp or finish in the top 6 at least. We have prime TV coverage and a good crowd tonight so anything less than a victory will set the tone for the rest of the year.

[DIEHARD]

Gold Coast Titans fans are being urged to fill the stands for the local derby clash with the Broncos tonight

475

CALLING all proud Gold Coasters — step up and show your allegiance.

Gold Coast NRL footy fans are urged to show their support as the Titans take on archrivals Brisbane Broncos for Queensland pride at Cbus Super Stadium tonight.

Titans officials are hoping for a full house of blue and gold to help cheer our team over the line and make the northern neighbour feel as unwelcome as possible.

More than 17,000 tickets have been sold for tonight’s game but that is still well short of the stadium’s 27,000 seat capacity.

Tonight’s game will also be one of the rare times of the year when footy fans Tony Sexton and his son Toby don’t see eye to eye.

The pair have never missed the annual derby but while Tony has been a Titans season ticket holder from day one, 13-year-old Toby remains a staunch Broncos fan.

“We are very passionate about our teams and whoever wins gets some good bragging rights for a few weeks,” Mr Sexton said.

The Sextons are taking it one step further this time, with the winner displaying their team’s flag at the front of the house for a week.

“The Titans are going well this season so I am feeling good,” Mr Sexton said.

http://www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au/sport/nrl/gold-coast-titans-fans-are-being-urged-to-fill-the-stands-for-the-local-derby-clash-with-the-broncos-tonight/story-fnj9yd9w-1226880628019?from=gold+coast+bulletin_rss

[DIEHARD]

Funny how sport follows politics, the infographic is the new black.

http://wa1.www.broncos.com.au/content/dam/broncos/site-images/2014/infographics/rd6/MatchPreviewInfographic_Round6_02.jpg
http://wa1.www.broncos.com.au/content/dam/broncos/site-images/2014/infographics/rd6/MatchPreviewInfographic_Round6_03.jpg
http://wa1.www.broncos.com.au/content/dam/broncos/site-images/2014/infographics/rd6/MatchPreviewInfographic_Round6_04.jpg
http://wa1.www.broncos.com.au/content/dam/broncos/site-images/2014/infographics/rd6/MatchPreviewInfographic_Round6_05.jpg

[TITAN PETE]

I thought the home side was always listed on the left :rolleyes:, typical cheating Donkeys :boo:

[Mexican titan]

Pax of 5 minutes ago 24,992. We might go close to a sell out after all. God I hope we win so that we can get some of these people back.

[DavidBouveng]

fark.... i want to beat them as much as the next bloke, but as long as its a great game, im looking forward to the huge crowd, the sea of blue, and the noise. guys like alby and sezer wouldnt have heard it before at this stadium.

form, high ladder position and the derby have brought the crowd, an entertaining night is whats needed to retain as many as possibe and keep the crowds highish.

[Mr Stupid]

fark.... i want to beat them as much as the next bloke, but as long as its a great game, im looking forward to the huge crowd, the sea of blue, and the noise. guys like alby and sezer wouldnt have heard it before at this stadium.

form, high ladder position and the derby have brought the crowd, an entertaining night is whats needed to retain as many as possibe and keep the crowds highish.

Sorry DB but I'd prefer we get out to an 18 point lead early, hold it for the rest of the night and kick back in the last 20 mins watching the Broncs fans filtering out with ten to go.:D

[gcboyz]

My only nagging worry is the short turn around from Sunday. Hopefully after a win, especially against the Storm in Melbourne the adrenalin will still be flowing. Short turnarounds are much harder after getting beaten.
My favourite wins will always be
A. Broncos anywhere
B. Storm in Melbourne
C. Manly at Brookvale

[Hail Sezer]

4-4 in u20s

Titans just scored through Kane Elgey

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Deacz makes the conversion and its 6-4 to Titans

[DIEHARD]

Im gonna tune out guys, I wont be able to watch until the match is completed.

Best of luck and ENJOY. Let's hope we get the victory we thirst for!

[Hail Sezer]

Highly rated broncos prospect Jayden Nikorima scores. Converts his own try, 10-6 to Broncos on the 32nd minute

- - - Updated - - -

Caleb Morehu scores for Titans. Kick from Deacz is good, Titans lead 12-10

- - - Updated - - -

Broncos score just before halftime and go in to the break leading 16-12

[DIEHARD]

Pax of 5 minutes ago 24,992. We might go close to a sell out after all. God I hope we win so that we can get some of these people back.

Wow that is promising! Maybe all that promotion out there has paid off. Also a match that promises to be a contest.

[Hail Sezer]

Jayden Nikorima scores a hatrick for the Broncos

22-12 Broncos

We'e got the gamebreakers to bring the game back. Not going to be easy though, Broncos 20s are a quality side. Especially those Nikorima brothers.

- - - Updated - - -

Titans 1-17 for NRL game

[Hail Sezer]

Centre Connor Broadhurst scores for Titans.

28-18 6 mins remaining

- - - Updated - - -

Kodi Nikorima scores

Final score 34-18 to Broncos

[C-Whiz]

Just had a feed and a few pints with the family at Dog and Parrot, now on the bus to the game.
So excited about this game!
This is how going to the footy to support your team is supposed to feel!
Titans by anything!!!

[Hail Sezer]

Just had a feed and a few pints with the family at Dog and Parrot, now on the bus to the game.
So excited about this game!
This is how going to the footy to support your team is supposed to feel!
Titans by anything!!!

Enjoy mate!

[Bayside Titan]

Dam Charlie from Sea is hot.

[isaiah]

Sorry DB but I'd prefer we get out to an 18 point lead early, hold it for the rest of the night and kick back in the last 20 mins watching the Broncs fans filtering out with ten to go.:Di'd call this sort of supporter a cat. you should welcome the away supporters. i met a few cats at the parra v broncs last week. should weed out their small-mindedness. cheer your side, complain less about the refs, and enjoy the footy.

[Bayside Titan]

Carty is in the side lines as the communication headsets not working. Henry was about to throw them
In the Middle of the field.

[isaiah]

60% broncs fans, woohoo

[Tamwelg]

Good first half apart from the 1 lapse in defense. If they keep patient I'm confident they will come home.

[Titanic]

can't watch it until 11.30 tonight and am going to leave work now so will not know the result until much much much later ... c'mon boys shut those Brisso's up!

[Hail Sezer]

Sezer needs to let that ball go wider earlier. Too much going himself or giving it too late.

Yvonne you angel I welcome your heavenly presence on my television screen

[rj62]

Sezer needs to let that ball go wider earlier. Too much going himself or giving it too late.

Yvonne you angel I welcome your heavenly presence on my television screen

Couldn't agree more. We saw what can happen when the ball goes wide last week, use the back line we have.

Hodges is unsettled and always reacts recklessly when under the pump. Target him.

Great to see Taylor getting involved more. Points can't be far away. Come on boys.

[K2G]

Agree with you HS - Sezer looking very one dimensional tonight. Backs being starved of early ball as usual. We need to get mead into the game, as he looks dangerous everytime he has ball in hand. I really like Don, good instincts. Blair with some good touches in attack and defense. Disappointing first half considering all the ball we had in good field position. Hopefully we come home strong.

[rj62]

3 penalties on the trot.....awesome.......

[Tamwelg]

cmon discipline. Don't ruin the first half in the first 5 mins.

[rj62]

Mead is like lightning and agree kickit he looks dangerous whenever he gets the ball

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Broncos are making mega metres each set...we are doing half.....

[K2G]

Don, and Harro look gone

Edit: Both should be back according to lockyer.

We're not looking good, and getting worse...

[rj62]

Defence has dropped badly ....attack struggling too. Not looking good

[Bayside Titan]

Don gone for game. Compound fracture.

[Tamwelg]

why carter.

[Boonarga]

Let's go for the intercept.

[Tamwelg]

bombed a try there needed to go left earlier.

[rj62]

Don gone for game. Compound fracture.

Compound? Ouch. Be gone for mor than this game

- - - Updated - - -

Broncos score again, game over

[K2G]

Getting smashed by the refs tonight.
Great tackle by mead on hunt. What a legend.


Legend status confirmed. Great try

[rj62]

We'll take that......what a Chase from McGuire

[Hail Sezer]

Thats our fullback lads.

[Tamwelg]

What a set of 6 from Mead, saved 2 tries and there goes the length of the field to score.

[rj62]

Great kick

- - - Updated - - -

Don't think so.....hope I'm wrong

[Tamwelg]

Harrison you idoit.

[rj62]

Step up alby

[Boonarga]

Zillman? Who is he? Mead is number 1 from now on. Watch Cartwright f*** it up.

[Hail Sezer]

See username

[rj62]

Yeahhhh baby..........!!!!!!

[Tamwelg]

Yes cmon boys bring it home.

[Tamwelg]

Silly penalty Carter.

[rj62]

Hold em out fellas....

- - - Updated - - -

Nice pass justin...

[K2G]

BALL NOT PLAYED AT!! f*ck me...

[rj62]

Man of the match JUSTIN HODGES!!!!!

[Tamwelg]

I'm on he edge of my seat.

[rj62]

BALL NOT PLAYED AT!! f*ck me...

Yeah what a crock of sh!t

- - - Updated - - -

That's a great win.......not pretty, but great none the less....

[Tamwelg]

You little beauty. What a win. Attack still not gelling, but defense and enthusiasm is there.

[Boonarga]

Even sweeter was Hodges having a shocker.

[K2G]

GREAT WIN. Considering the calls against us and how sh*t our attack is. Wow. Huge confidence boost that one. Best team in Qld & still top of the table. Love it.

Mead has to get MotM no?

[Tamwelg]

GREAT WIN. Considering the calls against us and how sh*t our attack is. Wow. Huge confidence boost that one. Best team in Qld & still top of the table. Love it.

Mead has to get MotM no?

Yep Mead got MOM and well deserved, best game he has ever played IMO. Dave Taylor bent the line when ever he ran. Kelly looked dangerous and his kicking game was the best it has ever been, looks like he's learnt some new tricks.

[Hail Sezer]

Mead was incredible. Absolute trooper.

I for one am going to be incredibly pissed off to see him robbed of the #1 jersey next week.

[Blade07]

Mead has to stay fullback after that please carty just put zilly in the centres
Impressed with carter and i think taylor had a blinder

[lonegull]

Great win, first half was great footy fast paced, mead got to hold the fullback position and the rest of the team will take confidence they can know match it with anyone

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Anyone got crowd figure

[Tamwelg]

Great win, first half was great footy fast paced, mead got to hold the fullback position and the rest of the team will take confidence they can know match it with anyone

- - - Updated - - -

Anyone got crowd figure

I think I heard them say 20 504 on channel 9.

[K2G]

Mead was incredible. Absolute trooper.

I for one am going to be incredibly pissed off to see him robbed of the #1 jersey next week.

Surely not even Carty can take it off him after the last two performances? Outplayed Billy slater, and Ben Barba in consecutive weeks, and outside of GI (edit - and Hayne) is arguably the form FB in the comp... Zillman has NEVER done that in his entire career.

Well by the sounds of it, Don's wing spot is now up for grabs (poor bloke, he has been super for us) - i hope they stick zilly there and let him try to earn the fullback spot back.

[Blade07]

Just a quick question with fantasy nrl
Is everyone's leagues working because I'm having trouble with mine

[Tamwelg]

Mead has to stay fullback after that please carty just put zilly in the centres
Impressed with carter and i think taylor had a blinder

As impress win Carter was at times, he did some pretty dumb things as well, still young and will develop into a good player.

[Tamwelg]

Just a quick question with fantasy nrl
Is everyone's leagues working because I'm having trouble with mine

Was a bit delayed with the update, but working fine here.

[Blade07]

I only have 5 mates in it and i thought it just locked out and auto filled any ideas on what i should do

[Ausphin]

Ecstatic with the win. Am sold on Mead at fullback. Zilly should come back in the centres. Not Taka's best game tonight.

Easy to say in hindsight, but i was honestly watching with my daughter and when we got the penalty i said to her, they should try and not convert the penalty. Just kick it dead, but nowhere near the posts as it might bounce back off them. Worse case scenario would be a broncos dropout with no time on the clock. I was screaming at the tv when it hit the post.

Also like what i have seen from gordon. Last 2 weeks has been playing with a physical edge i haven't seen before. Looked dangerous tonight too.

Hopefully with another win next week we can get back to a positive for and against.

[gotitans101_]

Zillman should have to earn his fullback spot back after that performance from Mead, outstanding.

Happy with the win but still a lot of areas we need to improve.

[Tamwelg]

As far as Zilly goes, there is a wing spot available, but only because Don broke his finger.

[Ryan]

About time the team turned up to play those ****s!
Collectively they went well, it was a fast, tight game.
Mead was just magic, Taylor also a stand out. A few penalties and errors gave me some serious doubts and I was worried about a complete collapse and blowout, but they held on and returned fire.
Eat **** Hodges x100!
Agree 100% with Tamwelg - Zillman to wing, if he's lucky. That's the fullback we need if we're any chance at a top 4 and finals contender...

[Boofhead]

Even that tosser Chris James couldn't get the Broncos over the line tonight. Digging in deep is what we have based our foundation on - that will win the fans back.

Good on you boys... enjoy the long turn around!

Does it get much better guys? Top of the ladder and topping the Donks!

[gotitans101_]

to be fair you can't blame the refs of being biased tonight. Yes there were some terrible decisions but they went both ways. The Luke Bailey trip was clear as day for everyone to see but the refs missed it lol.

[Smakked]

Great Win , had my doubts early but once again we dug deep and held. I just wish we would show more patience in attack, i am hoping that will come soon. Taylor had a great game, maybe he starting to get it, get the ball and run straight. As with everyone here Mead needs to stay at FB. Blair had a good game as well some great tackles to stop Barba.

Im getting to old for this felt like i was going to have a Heart attack in the last 10 minutes :|

PS **** i hate Parker wish some would knee cap the prick

[Ausphin]

On another note, for those who watched on tv, how bad was Ray Hadley's commentary. Never been a massive fan of Ray Warren, but Hadley is 100 times worse. The man is a tool who has no sense for the game.

Hard to believe that Hadley and Warren are the best 2 commentators channel 9 can find.

Thank god the fox guys are decent.

[K2G]

Seems like Carter has a mandatory forward pass per game in his contract. Really good young player though, glad to see him being given time to develop.

How shocking is Ray Hadley? Does my head in.

Has zillman ever been as involved, or as effective as mead was tonight? Doubt it.

I wish Roberts was healthy for the panthers game. Would love to rub it in their face. Incredibly, Idris looks like he has put on weight since he left here... I hope they boys run at him all night next week.

[Smakked]

On another note, for those who watched on tv, how bad was Ray Hadley's commentary. Never been a massive fan of Ray Warren, but Hadley is 100 times worse. The man is a tool who has no sense for the game.

Hard to believe that Hadley and Warren are the best 2 commentators channel 9 can find.

Thank god the fox guys are decent.
Have to agree with you mate, CH9 is rabble compared to how polished Fox is. better commentators who know what they are talking about

[gothabull]

We'll far out I don't know about u guys but that was the most satisfying win to me especially against my donkeys mates sitting beside me at the game. They taunted
Me still buzzing need a few brewskis to calm down yeeeerrrrw

[TITAN PETE]

60% broncs fans, woohoo

Dreamer , u couldn't get 60% at Scumcorp

[Mexican titan]

60% broncs fans, woohoo

60% my backside. Idiot.
Well the Broncos will be fresh next week with the usual 7 days between games. Oh wait...

[Mexican titan]

Just home from the game. Great win considering the attack.
Probably not a question I should ask after a win like that and when we are comp leaders but let's not kid ourselves, the attack is clueless at most times. Until Mead pounced I was pulling my hair out. Of course our attack was great against the Storm when we had a different 5/8. So my question, and I am ready to be howled down - should Blair be given another go at 5/8. Before tonight we were about 10th in points and tries scored and tonight will not change things. We will not beat the top sides with that attack.

[C-Whiz]

I bumped into 1000 old.mates and familiar faces tonight, at the pub, at the game and on the road on the way home. Seemed everyone was out for the game tonight.

Big props to GCT 89 who is still wearing the full face war paint.

Really enjoyed the game, but I was screaming to kick it dead after the hooter had gone. The fireworks was going off and the Broncos were looking like pulling off the impossible.

Who gives a crap, top of the table, earned the respect we deserved tonight, as a team and a few individuals earned the right to keep the jersey they wear wearing tonight.

[TITAN PETE]

Great game tonight & I have to say it's taken 6 games for me to say I have belief again in my team :salute:

Brilliant performance from Mead with 244 meters to his name from 17 touches & amongst that a 100 meter screamer after a try saving tackle became a 12 point turn around , Super Game.

Big DT was in unstoppable form running another 146 meters from 16 hit ups but his Defence was brutal at times making 24 tackles just a shame his only missed tackle was the only reason the Donkeys scored a try.

Carter has a massive future but just needs to not try the miracle ball every play but I wouldn't like to see him dropped for trying too hard.

Best night I've had at Skilled ( yes it will always be Skilled) in probably 3 years..

[Tamwelg]

Brad can we mention the 2 milestones now. Another sweet part with the win, we managed to do it with some milestones.

Congrats

Douglas 200 straight
Kevvy game number 100.

[gcboyz]

Happy for Harrison to concede that penalty. Experience showed, as he knew without it the broncos player was through the gap. Otherwise he had a rather pedestrian night. Dave Taylor was my best forward followed closely by Luke Douglas. David Mead will probably get most of my points tonight for an outstanding second half.
The most pleasing stat for the night was keeping the Donkeys to just one try.

[Boonarga]

Great game tonight & I have to say it's taken 6 games for me to say I have belief again in my team :salute:


Great win but it will take more than that to wipe my memory of the Tigers game. Honestly, if we lost tonight at least we could be proud of the effort. We need to see that effort every week.
I know 5 year contracts are a dirty word, but Carter! Sign him now for as long as he'll stay.

[TITAN PETE]

Sezer snatches late win for Titans
By Tony Webeck, Chief Queensland Correspondent
NRL.com
9:50pm Fri 11th April, 2014


A tormented night under the high ball ended in the worst possible fashion for Broncos fullback Ben Barba when he was unable to control a spiralling Albert Kelly bomb and Aidan Sezer pinched a 12-8 victory for the Titans in the south-east Queensland derby at Cbus Super Stadium.

The frantic finish earned the Titans their fifth win from six games and for 24 hours at least a four-point buffer at the top of the Telstra Premiership table.

Having been the saviour just eight minutes earlier when his leg prevented Titans forward Mark Minichiello from grounding the ball in the in-goal, Barba – who had spilled a similar kick from Kelly in the 16th minute and seemed disinterested in any high balls thereafter – let a bomb bounce next to his posts that cannoned straight up into the air.

As he tried to bring it under control, Sezer stole it from his grasp and scored beside the posts, his subsequent conversion giving the home side a four-point lead that they were able to protect for the final six minutes in front of 20,524 fans.

The Broncos took a 6-0 lead into the half-time break and extended their lead to eight in the 43rd minute when Corey Parker was taken high and duly converted the ensuing penalty from in front of the posts.

With Ashley Harrison (shoulder) and Anthony Don (dislocated finger) both leaving the field with injuries a matter of moments apart, the Titans were forced to tackle with a patched-up defensive line and twice went close to having their line breached for a second time.

Broncos back-rower Sam Thaiday was held up in the 50th minute and then Todd Lowrie was also denied by the video referee 10 minutes later. That call proved to be crucial as from the next play a Ben Hunt grubber was collected by Titans fullback David Mead one metre from his tryline and he raced 99 metres to score in the corner, kept out wide courtesy of a valiant effort by Broncos prop Josh McGuire.

That seemed to spark the Titans to life and with a more direct attack pushing the Broncos back through the middle of the ruck they were able to gather momentum that was almost first rewarded with a try to Minichiello, and then Sezer's match-winner in the 73rd minute.

A golden opportunity went begging for the Broncos with about 15 minutes remaining, when Josh Hoffman spilt the ball over the try-line.

The Titans had a chance to extend their lead on full-time when Greg Bird had a shot at penalty goal from 40 metres out but when it hit the post and bounced back into the field of play, the Broncos launched one more chaotic attacking raid before it was brought to an end with a knock-on on the 30-metre line.

Despite dominating territory and possession in the opening 25 minutes of the match, the Titans were continually repelled by a Broncos defence that wasn't asked any seriously difficult questions.

With Dave Taylor bullocking his way forward on the right side and being heavily involved in defence, the Titans had 55 per cent of the ball and spent 22 minutes in the Broncos' half in the first 40 but they never seriously threatened the Brisbane tryline.

Twice they handed over possession on the first tackle from a scrum win inside the Broncos' 20-metre line and the end of their attacking sets invariably ended with either Sezer or Kelly launching kicks to the corners.

On a number of occasions those kicks earned repeat sets but the Broncos defence held firm, and then they took one of their few chances to attack.

A busy Ben Hunt finally hit pay-dirt when he darted left down the short side and poked his nose through the Titans defence. The Broncos half's offload released Alex Glenn into the backfield and with only fullback David Mead to beat, Hunt backed up on the inside to score under the posts, his fifth four-pointer in six games.

Corey Parker added the obligatory two points and the Broncos opened up a 6-0 lead that they took into the main break.

There was one nervous moment in the 28th minute when Broncos back-rower Sam Thaiday was penalised for a lifting tackle on Matthew White but upon review seemed relatively innocuous and barely worthy of a penalty.

Mead looked like the Titan most likely to breach the Broncos defence through the middle of the ruck but for the most part the home side was guilty of playing too laterally and allowing the Brisbane defence to simply slide and shut them down on the edges.

Although he came up with some brutal tackles that Titans defensive coach Trevor Gillmeister would have been proud to call his own, Titans hooker Paul Carter was placed on report for the high tackle on Parker in the 43rd minute.

Gold Coast Titans 12 (David Mead, Aidan Sezer tries; Aidan Sezer 2 goals) def Brisbane Broncos 8 (Ben Hunt try; Corey Parker 2 goals). Crowd: 20,524.

[Mexican titan]

Yvonne you angel I welcome your heavenly presence on my television screen

Google "Yvonne Sampson Cricket" for a bit more Yvonne if you like.

[TITAN PETE]

Great win but it will take more than that to wipe my memory of the Tigers game. Honestly, if we lost tonight at least we could be proud of the effort. We need to see that effort every week.
I know 5 year contracts are a dirty word, but Carter! Sign him now for as long as he'll stay.

I am now willing to forgive them for the Tigers nightmare after the past 4 weeks efforts but if u are still bothered by it the good news is we play them again in 2 weeks time at Leichhardt oval :thumbsup:

[TITAN PETE]

Gold Coast thriller sees Titans wrestle the game back from the Broncos after halftime deficit
EMMA GREENWOOD GOLD COAST BULLETIN APRIL 11, 2014 9:40

The Titans scored 12 points in a thriller that was still alive after the siren after Greg Bird’s penalty attempt hit the uprights and bounced back into the field of play, allowing the Broncos a last chance to come back.

But as they have done all season, the Titans repelled the threat to notch their first win against big brother since 2012 and maintain their spot on top of the NRL ladder.

David Mead scored a scintillating 99m try to get the Titans on the board, while Aidan Sezer’s cool head under pressure allowed him to strip the ball from Ben Barba over the tryline to seal the win.

The opening half hour was an arm-wrestle and while the Titans seemed to have the upper hand early, they could not capitalise on their opportunities.

It was the Broncos that finally broke the deadlock, with Ben Hunt scoring under the posts after a neat show and go beat the tired Titans defence.


The Broncos hung on to withstand a final Titans raid and take a 6-0 lead to the break.
A Paul Carter high shot on Corey Parker in the opening minutes of the second term earnt the Broncos a penalty which Parker calmly slotted for an 8-0 lead.

Carter is also on report for the tackle.

But just when the Broncos looked like landing the knockout punch, Mead picked up a Hunt grubber just a metre out from his own line and raced 99m to score, with Aidan Sezer’s sideline conversion getting the Coast to within two points.

Sezer finished calmly, scoring and converting again to hand the Titans a 12-8 victory.

EARLIER: The Broncos have taken a 6-0 lead to halftime in the southeast Queensland NRL derby at Cbus Super Stadium.

The opening half-hour was an arm-wrestle and while the Titans seemed to have the upper hand early, they could not capitalise on their opportunities.

It was the Broncos that finally broke the deadlock, with Ben Hunt scoring under the posts after a neat show and go beat the tired Titans defence.

[Supergoose]

Fist pump x 1000. That's what I was doing when we won this game. Finally we play decent against the Broncos, even when some calls didn't go our way. I agree with the majority on here about Mead being the answer as far as fullback goes. Problem with that is finding a right winger (definitely not Zillman). I also agree that Sezer didn't perform as well as Blair did last week. So what do we do? I reckon Blair is also a left side player a if his why he's been better since he's been back.

Great effort tonight though. The Broncos tackle efficiency was first class tonight and we struggled to get away the offloads we have done in previous games. It's what makes our defence strong as well.

I don't know what's going on with Ryan James. Apparently he missed getting some innoculations so couldn't play versus PNG, but surely he'll give us more than we got from Bailey tonight.

[K2G]

I don't know what's going on with Ryan James. Apparently he missed getting some innoculations so couldn't play versus PNG, but surely he'll give us more than we got from Bailey tonight.

I dunno mate. Bailey's quick taps are pretty spectacular :laugh:
Seriously though, I can't wait for James to be back in the team. White and Carter are both giving great impact off the bench atm. Throw James in the mix and on-top of the meter gain and defensive edge, i think we'll actually see our attack start to get some fluency with a bit more time and space for our halves to work with. Ridiculous that he didn't play somewhere this week though...

[TITAN PETE]

Griffin: We did everything but win
By Tony Webeck, Chief Queensland Correspondent
NRL.com
3:30am Sat 12th April, 2014



Broncos coach Anthony Griffin has been left scratching his head after watching his team put in an almost flawless defensive effort yet still left Cbus Super Stadium without the two competition points on Friday night.

Having held the Titans at bay for the opening 30 minutes despite a glut of possession against them, the Broncos then led 8-0 with 20 minutes to play and were giving little indication that their defensive line was going to be breached.

But a brilliant 99-metre solo effort from fullback David Mead and a one-on-one steal by five-eighth Aidan Sezer in the in-goal area saw the Titans sneak home 12-8 and widen the gap at the top of the competition table between themselves and the chasing pack.

Broncos forwards Sam Thaiday and Todd Lowrie were both ruled to have been held up over the line in the second half while Josh Hoffman spilt the ball over the line with 15 minutes to play; if Brisbane score just one of those tries the final result is very different.

"We did everything but win the game," said Griffin, who described it as a "bizarre game".

"We handed them one... I suppose both of them from kicks, in the most unusual ways but our general effort and the way we went about our game was terrific.

"We dropped the ball over the line twice and got held up once and that was the ball-game in a nutshell really. We'd built the pressure and three tries they turned us away and that's why they're the No.1 team in the comp, they're a very tough defensive team.

"The football team's in great shape and we're playing with a great attitude we're just on the wrong side of the bounce of the ball at the moment."

Brisbane co-captain Corey Parker paid tribute to the gritty nature of not just Friday night's win but the Titans' season to date but said that his side was guilty of their own poor execution.

"I think you can see that from the win they got tonight. If you look at their past couple of games, that's how they've won their games, very gritty, and hence the reason they are where they are," Parker said of the Titans' position on the top of the ladder.

"We were in control for parts of that game but just failed to close out at crucial times there. We were building nicely there but there were a couple of times where we didn't execute the way we should have and that try they got off the kick certainly didn't help, they got some momentum off that.

"I thought tonight the way we defended was certainly a step in the right direction from the week before. We've still got work to do, as most sides do, and the next challenge for us will be next Friday night."

- - - Updated - - -

Titans capture spirit of success
By Tony Webeck, Chief Queensland Correspondent
NRL.com
3:30am Sat 12th April, 2014



It's one of sport's great intangibles.

Neither players nor coaches know what to call it or where it comes from.

It can't be coached or shown on video and it doesn't come simply by flogging them on the training paddock.

You won't find it in any rugby league coaching manual but the Titans have stumbled upon the secret formula to success and are revelling in the fortunes it is providing.

Their miraculous four-point win over the Broncos in front of more than 20,000 fans on Friday night came by virtue of two fortuitous bounces of the Steeden but when a team has found the ability to will victories where they would ordinarily not exist, funny things tend to happen.

The first team in 60 years to lead the competition despite a negative for-and-against believes they will win, no matter how dire the situation, even if coach John Cartwright shies away from trying to define exactly what the magic ingredient is.

"It's hard to say. It's one of those things where you've got to be out on the field to experience it," Cartwright said.

"You look at statistics and they don't tell the true story. I read many times this week where our statistics said that we were false leaders but there's something out there that the players are working very hard at and it just doesn't show up in statistics."

The Titans lost five games by six points or less in 2013 as they finished one win outside of finals footy yet in 2014 they have already recorded wins of six, four, two and one point to be sitting pretty four points clear at the top of the competition table.

A win next Monday night against the Panthers in Penrith would equal the club's best ever start to a season back in 2008 but co-captain Nate Myles knows that if the Titans get away from what has brought them to this point, they can lose that indefinable quality just as quickly as they found it.

"I don't know what name or category it comes under but everyone's just doing their little bit at training and it's starting to show," Myles said.

"I think everyone's just stepped up a little bit with regards to how they are at training and away from football as well and that's starting to rub off.

"I have no doubt that if we drop away in how we are at training and lose that little edge of professionalism I'm sure it will show on the field so we need to keep working hard and trying to improve.

"For the boys, I think it's fantastic that they're starting to see some rewards – even though we're not playing the type of football that we're capable of – they're starting to see the results by the wins and staying in the contest.

"I'm sure the coaches will be the first to remind them to stay on track and we go from there."

Iron man Luke Douglas's 200th game in succession was one of the most unusual of his career and he said that a pre-season focus on defence and a tight-knit playing group has enabled the Titans to turn heartbreak into triumph.

"You look at the two top teams from all the years gone by and they pride themselves on defence and having the best defence in the comp and maybe it's something that's starting to stick, to win games with defence," Douglas said. "It's something we talked about in the off-season and hopefully it's starting to click.

"Everyone's working hard, if we do miss one there's someone there to get on them and make that next one. We're all working for each other and there's pretty good depth so we're all pushing hard to make sure that we keep our spot. We're not giving up, we're winning ugly and we'll keep winning ugly.

"We've got a pretty good group, we all hang out together and there's a real good camaraderie there so that's another good point for us.

"We're all turning up for each other, there is belief and we've got trust in the guy next to us."

[C-Whiz]

Titans star wary of Barba-watching
By Tony Webeck, Chief Queensland Correspondent
NRL.com
7:00am Thu 10th April, 2014



As a kid he would marvel at the long-range tryscoring exploits of some of the game's great entertainers but Titans fullback David Mead insists he won't be a passive spectator if his opposite number, Ben Barba, breaks free on Friday night.

Opposing Storm superstar Billy Slater last Sunday, Mead scored a try, ran for 144 metres and came up with some critical plays at the Titans' defensive side of the field and drew high praise from his coach following the two-point win.

Since being given the opportunity to play fullback at the end of last season and also for Papua New Guinea at the World Cup, Mead has gone to school on the way the likes of Slater and Manly's Brett Stewart approach their work. Like all league fans he was captivated by Barba's displays in 2012 but does not want to see a return to that type of form on Friday night.

"I definitely enjoyed watching how he played in 2012 when he had that freak year but in saying that I'm going into the game 100 per cent focused on my job and doing it the best I can so our team can get the result," Mead said. "I can't get too caught up watching him do what he does.


"I haven't really played much fullback so I looked at Billy Slater and Brett Stewart, those types of players, I look at some of their clips and see what they do really well and try to use their type of game-plan in my game. Obviously I haven't had much of a chance to use that but watching them definitely helps my game.

"You've definitely got to do all your study on the kickers in the game because they're very different and kick to different parts of the field.

"You've just got to study each kicker differently every week and we certainly do our homework, myself and the two wingers, to make sure we're bringing the ball back as far as we can to help all the forwards out."

"
Last night David Mead became "that" guy, the guy that young kids around Australia want to play like and the guy that the rest of the NRL backs will be talking about. There will be kids out kicking the footy today wanting to "be" David Mead.
Congrats on the hard work, patience and perserverance. You owned the number 1 last night, and you showed Billy, Stewart and Barba how it's done. Superb effort. :thumbsup: :salute:

[DavidBouveng]

Great game to be at last night. Just watched replay this morning.

Until Meady went turbo, our attack was very poor. After last week, I'm starting to think sezer is holding us back.

Our effort and will to compete in this game was noticeable from the first whistle. Knew it was going to a better derby than recent times.

hodges had such a bad game. Couldn't happen to a nicer bloke.

carter is a good kid, but he is getting way too carried away. We also were vastly better side for the 55 minutes Falloon was out there. If u think about when we were in charge of the match, it was the first 25 and last 20.

Taylor or is playing like a beast. Shame we don't use him to his strengths, but he is getting on with it anyways and putting in big efforts. Especially in defense. Chases hard.

i hope meads try don't overshadow his all round game. Defense, bomb catching, dummy runs,passing in the backline, fielding grubbers. He was safe, involved and then spectacular.

Gordon's chasing of bombs is very useful, often leads to errors from opposition.

I think neil henry is starting to prepare for his takeover. His finger sprints are all over our new....dress code.

[DavidBouveng]

Also think that with a quarter of our seasons games played, it's a great time to get a 10 day turn around and refresh, especially after a broncos derby which must be a bit mentally taxing.

Enjoy it lads, then come out and smash the panthers.

[Toads]

As much as it was a good result all round last night. We're still playing scrappy football that wont see us venture too far into the Finals if/when the time arrives later in the year. Still looking forward to the time we see some constant cohesion from within the team.

Good to see Meady step up last night 'n silence the knockers like myself (people who don't see him as our long term Fullback fix). Admittedly, he is a hell of a lot better option than the Total Package (Zillman).

[gcboyz]

My favourite time of the week is reading the online forum of our vanquished opponents. Great read this week. Broncos forum calling for Griffins head on a stick. These guys are savage, makes this forum look like a knitting circle. Hunt is crap, Hodges is underdone, Ben Barba is required to be sent back to Q Cup and Kennedy is an overpriced Marshmallow.
I have not laughed so much since granny got her t*ts caught in the mangle.:laugh:

[TITAN PETE]

My favourite time of the week is reading the online forum of our vanquished opponents. Great read this week. Broncos forum calling for Griffins head on a stick. These guys are savage, makes this forum look like a knitting circle. Hunt is crap, Hodges is underdone, Ben Barba is required to be sent back to Q Cup and Kennedy is an overpriced Marshmallow.
I have not laughed so much since granny got her t*ts caught in the mangle.:laugh:

Yes mate it's very funny reading :laugh:

Your parting line is from the funniest comedy skit I have ever heard from Peter a Cook & Dudley Moore, "Laugh , I have not Laughed so much",,,,,:thumbsup:

[Supergoose]

That's harsh on Hunt, they obviously watched a different game to me. He was very dangerous and did a lot of good things for them. Our defence is where it should be, efficient and effective. Parker and Thaiday have been rocking and rolling teams this season but we shut them down well. Now to find out what's happening with big Dark, hope his confidence in his shoulder returns quickly as he'll add a whole other dimension to us and we'll need him against some of the bigger sides.

[Bayside Titan]

One thing that I have noticed is that once Whitey and Bull get on the temp lifts abit as well. I think that it's important that we retain Whitey as well he is in the top 10 for off loads and that helps is a lot to keep the ball alive.

Broncos looked to have a plan to isolate Kelly and Taylor and made them do a lot of work hence why Kelly's tackle count was high. I agree with some others that Hunt was pretty good and gave the Broncs a few good opportunities.

Our defence at the moment is keeping us in games and just shear luck in attack is winning us games. The defence has Neil Henry's finger prints all over it so one would hope that Neil is in charge of the Titans next year or later this year.

As for players for us that played well I think that Taylor is getting better each week and Myles is returning to form and the BALD TWINS off the bench give us a lot as well. To me it seems like the outside backs just need to come together more. Falloon is getting better each week as well as he is linking well with Alby.

[DavidBouveng]

hunt was second best on field only to Mead last night imo

[TITAN PETE]

hunt was second best on field only to Mead last night imo

I agree mate without him they would wouldn't have scored a point & of what I've seen of the Donkeys play this year he's easily been their best , I'd have him if Kelly was out in a heart beat

[Kevin Rablin]

[QUOTE=Bayside Titans;341387]One thing that I have noticed is that once Whitey and Bull get on the temp lifts abit as well. I think that it's important that we retain Whitey as well he is in the top 10 for off loads and that helps is a lot to keep the ball alive.

Only thing i am not liking about white is he has a habit of pushing himself up off the tackled opponents back. I don't think he has given away a penalty for it yet, however i think a few could have been blown. apart from that he is running hard, and yes offloading. Is it just me or last night, when we started offloading we played much better, caused thinning defence on the ball carrier and got a lot of quick play the balls. Not sure if it happened much in the first half but i definitely noticed it in the second.

[DavidBouveng]

we were 20 or so ahead of the closest team in the NRL before this round for offloads. it was 66 for us and 47 for next best... so we are almost 50% ahead of the CLOSEST team in the NRL. thats quite a gap, and is clearly a coached tactic

- - - Updated - - -

for sure, he scored once, almost twice (thanks Meady) and was the man most likely once we got ahead. he did make a decent break but gordon got him just.

His grubbers close to the line were pretty dangerous except for one also (thanks Meady)

He has been one of the top halves this year and is well ahead on form compared to pearce, maloney, cronk.

Despite not being a big broncs fan, i am happy for him as he has carried pressure for years,got played at hooker for years, got prince parachuted into his spot last year, and now hes finally taking his chance...and doing it well.

[Kevin Rablin]

totally agree. when we offload we are dangerous. Offloaded heaps in the melbourne game, won that. I didn't see to many in the first half last night (might be mistaken though) but in the second half i saw quite a few and we looked to speed the game up by doing so.

- - - Updated - - -

and mead is without a doubt our number 1. i, along with many, was campaigning for this earlier this year. Overall so proud of the boys. It wasn't pretty but we got it done. I am also wondering if blair should be our 5/8. I know seizer has a great kicking game and is a class player, but we just seemed more organised against melbourne.

[DavidBouveng]

i think blair was more effective and helped the team keep and better shape and bal movement, but at his age it might be better if we utilise him as a tool to train Sezer. Sezer is young and the future, and we have a guy who showed in one game some of the missing things from Sezers game. get them togther, watch the melbourne tape, dicuss, learn, and sezer can use those skills for 10 years. at the moment, when sezers not kicking the ball, hes about as useful as Jack Reed.

[Titanic]

Watched it twice now, read all your comments and have a few of my own too.

There are few things better than eating humble pie when it applies to your footy team and I have to take my hat off to Neil Henry for turning this bunch of misfits into a team, albeit an imperfect one as yet.

1. David Mead should now have the #1 tattooed on his back and Zillman should only be considered if for some reason Mead is injured.
2. Zillman does not warrant ousting Don from the right wing nor command a position at left centre. I doubt he can defuse bombs on the wing because he couldn't defuse them at FB and he is definitely not the quality of Blair who is proving to be a revelation on the left side where he should have started the season.
3. Sezer needs serious help. He chokes the left side and a swap with Blair in attack could help his learning curve. He is also a quality player in need of guidance and I was very pleased to see him get his ar$e over on the right side a few times, as he should.
4. Blair's commitment in defence is not what I had expected from him. Late in the game his double tackle to shut down a very dangerous situation just prior to Mead's magic was exceptional heart from a new player.
5. Brad Tighe is the perfect RIGHT side replacement for Don if he is fit and Don is injured. When they are both they should be the RIGHT side combination with Takairangi, who has earned his spot, coming off the bench.
6. Kevin Gordon, I am very pleased to be wrong and suggest you go out and buy Blair a lottery ticket as his talk has gone a long way into solving our left-side problems. I hope our other readers here are watching how Blair controls that left side now. He's not the fastest or the most punishing but he has real rugby league smarts.
7. Paul Carter step back, have a look at yourself and don't listen to the pundits. Forward passes take two, that's for sure, but they start with the person who passes. Also have a chat to Ryan James about what being an NRL hitman means ... he had to learn the hard way that it's a long way to the top if you want to rock and roll.
8. Harrison's injury may open a gap for James to return otherwise James shouldn't get a spot in place of anyone else other than Minichiello. Minichiello is honest but James should go into the prop rotation and Myles to the backrow.
9. Falloon is an enigma. Is he better than Srama? Well, until Srama has some form on the board Falloon is our hooker and he is not the reason for the lack of direction, that honour goes back to our halves. Alby is not an organiser and Sezer doesn't seem to be able to over rule the forwards ... Blair can.
10. Kelly is true star and just needs to be allowed to play his game. Henry gets this and we should be confident that he won't get harnessed into a Cartwright box.
11. Taylor seems to love being asked to play big minutes. He was great last night.
12. As for Bird, Bailey, White and Douglas; nobody could argue that these guys ever lie down. They are machines.

I loved that win because we played like a team that believed in themselves and each other. That is all I have ever wanted from them.

And finally my team for this week:

1. Mead
2. Gordon
3. Blair
4. Takairangi
5. Tighe but you could bet this will be Zillman
6. Sezer
7. Kelly
8. Douglas
9. Falloon
10. James
11. Myles
12. Taylor
13. Bird

14. Bailey
15. White
16. Minichiello not Ridge against Penrith
17. Carter

Oh I nearly forgot ... Broncos eat sh1t :)

[DIEHARD]

Oh yes, finally drawing blood from the Broncos and out playing them. Yea I know both teams werent fantastic but we showed it when it counted and there was a hunger to win. Mead was incredible at fullback, inspiring and electric. That length of the field try was amazing. He must be our #1.

Gordon as well was a great performer. I agree with Titanic on Carter and Falloon.

So happy to hear so many happy Titans fans and to send all those Broncos fans to bed disappointed.

Hodges and Barba were woeful. I havent seen Hodges play that badly since Origin 2002.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/5Sf-hq5Y-Gc?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[DIEHARD]

Silly voice is back with match highlights

<script height="349px" width="620px" src="http://player.ooyala.com/iframe.js#ec=RxbmN5bDpM8Fv-7tMFdAfMVo7CNE0yj5&pbid=fd5fc71d2bcc4b60a622cf8d3348d605"></script>

[Geeman]

Well said Titanic, sums it up quite nicely :thumbsup:

[DavidBouveng]

Last night David Mead became "that" guy, the guy that young kids around Australia want to play like and the guy that the rest of the NRL backs will be talking about. There will be kids out kicking the footy today wanting to "be" David Mead.
Congrats on the hard work, patience and perserverance. You owned the number 1 last night, and you showed Billy, Stewart and Barba how it's done. Superb effort. :thumbsup: :salute:

I don't remember the last day I didn't want to be David Mead. I went and got a faded haircut like him today. A good thing too, as the short fro was a lot of upkeep

- - - Updated - - -

Titanic,

loved your post, but I disagree that Carty will pick zillman over tighe for the wing....

im sure he'll pick zillman over mead for fullback!! It's criminal but he will.

[Hail Sezer]

I don't remember the last day I didn't want to be David Mead. I went and got a faded haircut like him today. A good thing too, as the short fro was a lot of upkeep

- - - Updated - - -

Titanic,

loved your post, but I disagree that Carty will pick zillman over tighe for the wing....

im sure he'll pick zillman over mead for fullback!! It's criminal but he will.


Welcome to the fade club

[Titanic]

I am not a gambler DB, although I did put the whole 500 on the team yesterday :) , but I'd bet it all again that even Cartwright must recognise Mead's form and will hide Zillman on the wing under the guise of "easing him back in".

[DIEHARD]

I have to mention Wally Lewis, who gave a fantastic tribute to his former coach Struddy when he was at the Valleys Diehards (http://www.valleysdiehards.com).

Ill be uploading that part to youtube shortly.

Thanks Wally!

[Titanic]

Grubby Struddy ... he was such a little sh1t of player ... good bloke though ... hey, DH, get a hold of the old video Lewis on League and watch those two ... classic.

[DIEHARD]

Another lovely infographic from the Broncos

http://wa1.www.broncos.com.au/content/dam/broncos/site-images/2014/infographics/rd6/MatchReviewInfographic_Rd6_01.jpg
http://wa1.www.broncos.com.au/content/dam/broncos/site-images/2014/infographics/rd6/MatchReviewInfographic_Rd6_02.jpg
http://wa1.www.broncos.com.au/content/dam/broncos/site-images/2014/infographics/rd6/MatchReviewInfographic_Rd6_03.jpg
http://wa1.www.broncos.com.au/content/dam/broncos/site-images/2014/infographics/rd6/MatchReviewInfographic_Rd6_04.jpg
http://wa1.www.broncos.com.au/content/dam/broncos/site-images/2014/infographics/rd6/MatchReviewInfographic_Rd6_05.jpg

[a flash of gordon]

I was watching the Sunday Footy Show and Greg Bird was the guest. Sterlo asked Bird why he didn't attempt to kick dead and Bird said he was told by the ref that if he intentionally missed the conversion the Broncos would have received a penalty and we would of been marched ten.

[nimud]

I was watching the Sunday Footy Show and Greg Bird was the guest. Sterlo asked Bird why he didn't attempt to kick dead and Bird said he was told by the ref that if he intentionally missed the conversion the Broncos would have received a penalty and we would of been marched ten.

What is clear to me the past two weeks is Brad Taka is the biggest cat I've seen pull on a Titans jersey. For a bloke who was originally a back rower, he has the heart of a pea.