Round 16: ROOSTERS vs TITANS

[DIEHARD]

ROOSTERS vs TITANS

[Hail Sezer]

Sezer out for 3 weeks

You out there Schwassy?

[JunctionBlock]

Sezer out for 3 weeks

You out there Schwassy?

Source?

[mdrew]

Sezer out for 3 weeks

You out there Schwassy?

Good call dan schwass has a calmness about his game his twin brother would not be out of place either give youth a go

[amaline]

Source?

Travis Meyn's twitter.

[Hail Sezer]

Source?

Sorry mate should have included it in OP, yeah it's from Meyn's twitter and Henry spoke about it in the press conference too

[Hail Sezer]

Tweed v PNG is being live streamed this avo on www.qrl.com.au, starts at 3pm. Leva li, Binge, Karl Lawton all involved.

Worth a watch as some of them may be playing for us in the Roosters game.

[DIEHARD]

Tweed v PNG is being live streamed this avo on www.qrl.com.au, starts at 3pm. Leva li, Binge, Karl Lawton all involved.

Worth a watch as some of them may be playing for us in the Roosters game.

Thanks mate, I'll be watching!

[TITAN PETE]

I
Tweed v PNG is being live streamed this avo on www.qrl.com.au, starts at 3pm. Leva li, Binge, Karl Lawton all involved.

Worth a watch as some of them may be playing for us in the Roosters game.


Thanks mate, I'll be watching!
Not to forget Burliegh is playing live on 9 now..

Sezar torn hamy 3 weeks may be wishful thinking but yeah throw in Schwassy what do we have to lose its all about our future now & any win in between will be a bonus

[TitanSam]

So what's our team looking like for this week?

1. Mead? (If injured)/Don/Roberts
2. Don/KFFL/Li
3. Roberts
4. MacDonald
5. Gordon
6. Hoffman
7. Mortimer/Schwass/New Talent
8. Douglas
9. Redman/Mortimer
10. Myles
11. Robinson
12. Pettybourne
13. Burr

14. Ioane
15. Paasi
16. Taylor
17. Hala??/Redman

[Hail Sezer]

Watched Tweed game and heard a comprehensive report on Burleigh game.

Don't be surprised to see Ryley Jacks nab a short-term contract and potentially line up this weekend if we are really struck for options like it seems. Lawton played very very few minutes for Tweed.

[TitanSam]

So is Ryley Jacks good? Could anyone compare him to a half playing right now? So I can get an idea what he's like?

[Hail Sezer]

So is Ryley Jacks good? Could anyone compare him to a half playing right now? So I can get an idea what he's like?

I hate to say it but Mitchell Pearce

[TitanSam]

I hate to say it but Mitchell Pearce well at least he's a half I guess

[Mexican titan]

Good call dan schwass has a calmness about his game his twin brother would not be out of place either give youth a go

You know the young blokes far far better than me but In my view the best of the under 20's go to QCup before NRL unless they are exceptional talents. I have watched the under 20's a fair bit of late and in my opinion there is no one close to being an exceptional talent. Play them against men for a while before the NRL if they are any good.

[Hail Sezer]

You know the young blokes far far better than me but In my view the best of the under 20's go to QCup before NRL unless they are exceptional talents. I have watched the under 20's a fair bit of late and in my opinion there is no one close to being an exceptional talent. Play them against men for a while before the NRL if they are any good.

In fairness Daniel played cup when he was 18 (before u20's) and played it last year as well for a bit. Has been injured recently but has played more cup than any of our other 20's players combined as well as Elgey.

[Mexican titan]

In fairness Daniel played cup when he was 18 (before u20's) and played it last year as well for a bit. Has been injured recently but has played more cup than any of our other 20's players combined as well as Elgey.

Thanks for that HS. I would hope that once he went to QCup he would stay there but perhaps he is guaranteed more game time in under 20's.

[TITAN PETE]

You know the young blokes far far better than me but In my view the best of the under 20's go to QCup before NRL unless they are exceptional talents. I have watched the under 20's a fair bit of late and in my opinion there is no one close to being an exceptional talent. Play them against men for a while before the NRL if they are any good.

You are right mate but Dan Schwass has played a few games of Intrust cup last year & will probably get another start or 2 this year but I'll think most of us that mentioned him may have said it "tongue in Cheek", Riley Jacks from Burliegh would be a rough chance but I expect it will be
6.Hoffman
7.Morts
9.Redman
The bench is where a possible surprise may come from

[charged2go]

You are right mate but Dan Schwass has played a few games of Intrust cup last year & will probably get another start or 2 this year but I'll think most of us that mentioned him may have said it "tongue in Cheek", Riley Jacks from Burliegh would be a rough chance but I expect it will be
6.Hoffman
7.Morts
9.Redman
The bench is where a possible surprise may come from

I think your bench surprise spot titan pete will be that of Karl Lawton... was 18th man for the bulldogs game and if sezer was out then he would have played, i would expect them to fall back into that platform.

[RenegadeGC]

Yeah i think Lawton will get the bench spot as well with Mortimer and Hoffman in the halves. Redman to start.

Although who knows, still time before the June 30 deadline to pull a few rabbits out the hat ;)

[Hail Sezer]

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/xdBIQX5' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/xdBIQX5.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>


Between Lawton and Dowling apparently

[NSW Titan]

Dowling in the halves? No thankyou does he even play in the halves in qcup? As far as I know he's only played centre, fullback and 2nd row, so a big no to that we need halves/hookers

[Hail Sezer]

Dowling in the halves? No thankyou does he even play in the halves in qcup? As far as I know he's only played centre, fullback and 2nd row, so a big no to that we need halves/hookers

He is playing in the halves in Qcup but i agree I wouldn't play him near there in NRL

[charged2go]

Dowling in the halves? No thankyou does he even play in the halves in qcup? As far as I know he's only played centre, fullback and 2nd row, so a big no to that we need halves/hookers

Dowling played 2 games in the halves for burleigh qcup earlier in the year... played centre in yesterdays 1 point win over wynum manly. I don't think putting Dowling in the halves in NRL is a good idea at all.

[timor 2]

Titans
1 David Mead
2 Anthony Don
3 James Roberts
4 Nene Macdonald
5 Kevin Gordon
6 Josh Hoffman
7 Daniel Mortimer
8 Luke Douglas
9 Chad Redman
10 Nate Myles
11 Ryan James (c)
12 Dave Taylor
13 Edward Pettybourne

Interchange
14 Agnatius Paasi
15 Mark Ioane
16 Lachlan Burr
17 Matt Robinson
18 Matt White

Coach: Neil Henry

[K2G]

Kicking duties falling to Mortimer and Hoffman!
This could get ugly ...

[JunctionBlock]

Kicking duties falling to Mortimer and Hoffman!
This could get ugly ...

You're assuming we'll score a try.

[K2G]

You're assuming we'll score a try.

I'm more worried about general kicking duties mate ... Sezer's boot (really good at turning the opposition around by keeping the ball in play, but knows when to kick dead to give our boys a rest) have been keeping us in games of late. Mortimer and Hoffman are class A shankers.

[Bayside Titan]

You're assuming we'll score a try.

That's my fear that we won't score. You look at the Rooters team list and you just go wow.

[TITAN PETE]

I hope we can get within 18 points of the Rooters as this game could get ugly

[Smakked]

This could be a blow out game, i think they will go close to putting 50 on us.

[DavidBouveng]

i like seeing James as captain.

[Mexican titan]

i like seeing James as captain.

I would be surprised if he plays. Will be a very quick recovery from last weekend but here's hoping.
At least this game is at Gosford so not really a home game for them. Plus they'll have the Monday game hangover. So do I think we'll win.......nah but it might be closer than others on here think.

[Mr Stupid]

This could be a blow out game, i think they will go close to putting 50 on us.

I don't think defence will be the problem and I don't believe they'll run riot. I just think our halves won't get us over their line. So whatever their score they'll keep us to zero.

[Titanic]

I think we've got a try in us at both the 5th and 79th minutes.

[nimud]

This could be a blow out game, i think they will go close to putting 50 on us.

Just like the past two games in Sydney vs Roosters when our team was severely under strength?

Anything can happen. I thought the boys were in good form for the first half of the Warriors game, and then we lost some cattle.

I'll be at the game. The boys will have a crack at the chooks.

[Toads]

Dunno if this one is beyond us, (iirc) the Roosters have had a couple of shockers this year. If we're firing, we might just get this one on 'em..

[JunctionBlock]

Pray for rain then we won't need to depend on our halves as much.

[DIEHARD]

Titans turn to former Roosters for guidance
http://www.nrl.com/

The Titans have turned to two former Roosters to help engineer the upset of the season after confirming their team to head to Gosford's Central Coast Stadium on Sunday.

Having opened as $5.80 outsiders against the Roosters, the Titans have already drifted out to $6 with Sportsbet and could be as long as $7 by the time a ball is kicked as they endeavour to keep their top eight aspirations alive.

Captain Nate Myles – another former Bondi boy – has been named to return from a foot injury to play his 200th NRL game but a decision won't be made until later in the week as to whether Ryan James has recovered sufficiently from a bruised shoulder to take his place in the team.

With Aidan Sezer sidelined with a hamstring injury Daniel Mortimer has moved back into the halfback position to partner Josh Hoffman in the halves while Nene Macdonald will face the Roosters less than a fortnight after leaving the club to link with the Titans.

Having only started five games in the halves in three years at the Roosters, Mortimer moved to the Gold Coast to play halfback but after suffering a wrist injury lost his place in the halves to rookie Kane Elgey and has had to fill in at hooker over the past month.

Injuries have conspired to give Mortimer another shot at his preferred position but coach Neil Henry said all the playmaking responsibilities can't fall to one man.

"He will be [the chief playmaker] but I thought that Josh Hoffman has been doing a fair job as well," Henry said. "He carries the ball well and is getting a bit more confidence about commanding the ball so he'll need to do that as well so it doesn't all fall on Morts's shoulders.

"He's really filled in well and shown his versatility. He's been out there playing big minutes in a role in the midfield and making an enormous number of tackles and been very effective in what he has been doing as well.

"He's a versatile player that's proved his worth as a utility, that's for sure."

Macdonald turned out for the Roosters last in Round 8 against the Dragons and now eight weeks later finds himself on the opposite side of the field.

With an all-star backline entrenched at the Roosters Macdonald sought a new opportunity at the Titans and impressed many with his club debut against the Warriors, Henry confident he has addressed some defensive deficiencies that were exposed.

"I think he'll be up for the challenge," Henry said. "He hasn't had too many opportunities to play first grade down there this year and I thought he showed some nice touches for us in his first game too.

"He's working on his defence, there were a couple of times that they got through that edge but he's big and strong and he showed what he can do with a nice pass on the inside and a couple of strong carries."

Gold Coast's other mid-season recruit, Chad Redman, has been named to start at hooker and with Henry naming a five-man bench full of big forwards will be expected to play big minutes against the Roosters.

With few playmaking options at his disposal, Henry said Mortimer will be used to relieve Redman at dummy-half at various stages during the game.

"We're not expecting 80 minutes [out of Redman]. Daniel Mortimer can move from his role in the halves and we'll just have to do a bit of a shuffle there," said Henry.

"We think we can do a bit of dummy-half work out of yardage in particular with 'Meady' (David Mead) and our outside backs in there so we think we can nurse him through for probably 60 minutes.

"He's fairly fit but we'll have to be a bit creative around getting him rests in the game.

"We've got 12 or 13 players out now and we're depleted particularly around our halves and hooker spots so it's a trying time for the club.

"We're in there battling and we need to win a few games to stay in touch with the top eight and it's going to be a tough task against the Roosters."

[Smakked]

Didnt we rolll the roosters last time we played them ? We were not expected to win but did ?

[JunctionBlock]

Exert from one of many articles circulating...

"There is good news for the Gold Coast with captain Nate Myles likely to be fit to play his 200th game, while Henry has tenuously named forward Ryan James who is expected to recover from a shoulder injury.

James has been cleared of any structural damage but will be monitored throughout the week."

I'd prefer to see Ryan sit this one out, have the bye off and be right for R18 where he can use his fully fit shoulder to run at a certain halfback.

[Hail Sezer]

GCB reporting that James Roberts is going to be playing in the halves on Sunday when Morts moves to hooker

Oh lawd

[GCTTSD]

He should be playing there instead of hoffman. At least he can pass and he will get the ball alot more often

[JunctionBlock]

GCB reporting that James Roberts is going to be playing in the halves on Sunday when Morts moves to hooker

Oh lawd

He can pass but no one will have any idea what he's doing. It'd be like DCE in SOO 2.

[K2G]

Titans consider Roberts switch

Thu 25 Jun, 2015, 6:00am
By Tony Webeck, Chief Queensland Correspondent, NRL.com (http://www.nrl.com/titans-consider-roberts-switch/tabid/10874/newsid/87389/default.aspx)

Bereft of playmaking options due to a horror injury toll Titans coach Neil Henry is manoeuvring his most dangerous attacking weapon closer to the ball in order to unsettle the formidable Roosters defence on Sunday.

Having named Daniel Mortimer and Josh Hoffman in the halves, Henry will start with former Knight Chad Redman at hooker and has named an extended bench consisting of five forwards for the clash at Gosford.

With no back-up hooker available for selection and the expectation that Mortimer will move into dummy half to give Redman a spell at various stages, Henry looks set to bring the electrifying James Roberts in closer to the action.

Should Roberts come in from the centres to spend some time in the halves, Dave Taylor will likely shift out wider from the back row, a position he proved very effective in for the Titans in a number of games last season.

The Titans' most prolific player with 14 tries in 14 games this season, Roberts has received the ball on just 200 occasions to rank eighth among touches for Titans players thus far in 2015.

Although he played some fullback for South Sydney in the under-20s competition, Roberts' entire NRL career to date has been spent in the centres or on the wing but he spent plenty of time at first receiver at training on Wednesday, prompting captain Nate Myles to christen him with the nickname of 'Cherry-Evans'.

Insisting that under-20s hooker Karl Lawton needed more time playing in the Intrust Super Cup before he would receive an NRL call-up, Henry said on Tuesday that he would need to be creative in how he managed his interchanges on Sunday.

"I don't expect [Redman] to play 80 minutes but Daniel Mortimer can move from his role in the halves and we'll just have to do a bit of a shuffle there," Henry said.

"I think we can nurse him through for probably 60 minutes anyway, he's fairly fit, but we'll have to be a bit creative around getting him rests in the game."

Redman and Nene Macdonald will be expected to play a more prominent role in just their second game for the club and Macdonald said that while the injury toll is tough on his new team, there is enough versatility in the squad to trouble the Roosters.

"We've got a few boys that are pretty versatile which is good. Jimmy Roberts can go anywhere and a few of the other boys are slowly coming back," said Macdonald, who will line up against Roosters players who were teammates less than a fortnight ago.

"It's tough with everyone injured but it's good with me and Chad coming here and adding two more men to the field so we'll just see what happens."




... I know I'm calling Nate a better player than Shillo in another thread, but honestly - I'm glad he's leaving. I'm still dirty on him for his role in the DCE saga, and feel like he should've been dropped as captain for the remainder of the season. The harmless jibe in the above story, makes me filthy at the club for persisting with him as captain.

[teke]

So Roberts will be cramping up by the 20th min

[JunctionBlock]

Hail Mary full of Grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed are thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus. Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death Amen.

[shamus]

So Roberts will be cramping up by the 20th min

That's why he would (currently) not make a very good fullback. A lot more work involved (at fullback) and he cramps every game.

[DIEHARD]

Sydney Roosters v Gold Coast Titans
Central Coast Stadium Sunday, 2pm
http://www.nrl.com/

A match-up between the premiership favourites coming into form and a finals hopeful desperate to stop another season from slipping away would appear a straightforward scenario, and the bookmakers agree.

The Titans have drifted ever since they opened as $5.80 outsiders on Monday but as the Roosters discovered in Round 5, footy doesn't always go according to script.

On that occasion the cellar-dwelling Sharks were rated a $4.20 chance to knock off a Roosters team who had won three of their first four games of the season and in this game the Titans go in with a superior head-to-head record.

Decimated by injuries, Titans coach Neil Henry is set to throw a few positional switches at the Roosters to try and disrupt the second-best defence in the competition but discipline will be critical to both teams.

The Roosters receive less penalties (five) per game than any other team in the competition while the Titans are guilty of giving away more penalties (eight) than any other team.

The Titans' discipline in defence will also be tested against a team that averages 28 tackle breaks per game; Gold Coast's average of 33 missed tackles per game is the worst in the NRL.

Michael Jennings and Sam Moa have both been named to return for the Roosters after missing Monday night's win over the Dragons while The Titans are without Aidan Sezer (hamstring) and could also lose Ryan James (shoulder).

Having spent five years at Bondi, Titans skipper Nate Myles will play his 200th NRL game against his former club.

In addition to school visits and Come-and-Try clinics on Friday, the Roosters are conducting an open training session at midday on Saturday at Central Coast Stadium for any fans who would like to go along and watch the boys go through their paces.

And for fans attending the game, stick around after full-time for the VB NSW Cup match between Wyong and Penrith featuring local hero Mitch Williams and a host of players with NRL experience from both teams.

Watch Out Roosters: He is a face familiar to players and fans alike and no one will know the threat Nene Macdonald poses to the Roosters better than coach Trent Robinson. A member of the Roosters system for the past four years, the 21-year-old made a mid-season switch to the Titans last week and impressed many with his first-up display against the Warriors, one of only four Titans players to run for more than 100 metres, laying on a try to go with three offloads and three tackle busts. The opportunity to go up against Blake Ferguson is one the PNG international is very excited about.

Watch Out Titans: It's no blinding revelation to Gold Coast coach Neil Henry that Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is a man to be monitored more closely than a toddler in a lolly shop, but given the Titans' low playmaking stocks the Roosters fullback is even more deadly. The man with the prettiest pirouette in footy has made more runs than any other player in the competition and has run for almost 1,000 more metres than any other player in the NRL. By his standards he was kept relatively quiet against the Dragons and still ran for 195 metres with nine tackle busts and with the Titans' kicking game lessened by the injury to five-eighth Aidan Sezer, RTS could be in for a field day.

Key Match-up: Mitchell Pearce v Daniel Mortimer. Two of rugby league's most revered family names go head-to-head in very different stages of their careers. Pearce is out to deliver another classy performance before heading into a State of Origin decider with the Blues, while Mortimer has been handed the No.7 jersey again after a raft of injuries decimated the Titans' playmaking stocks. With Josh Hoffman at five-eighth and young Chad Redman starting at hooker much will fall to Mortimer who has been terrific playing at hooker over the past month. Pearce, on the other hand, has representative stars both inside and out but needs to ensure the overwhelming favourites stick to the plan throughout and don't fall into the trap of complacency.

History: Played 12; Roosters 5, Titans 7. One of only six teams who the Titans have a winning record over, the Roosters won the first encounter in 2007 24-18, but the most significant meeting was in the 2010 Preliminary Final played in front of more than 44,000 fans in Brisbane. The Roosters broke Gold Coast hearts with a thumping 32-6 win, current Titans captain Nate Myles starting in the second row for the Tricolours.

Did You Know? The Titans have only ever played one match at Gosford's Central Coast Stadium, recording a 24-20 win over the Roosters in Round 14, 2009. A double to Sisa Waqa had seen the Roosters fight back from an 18-6 half-time deficit to lead 20-18 before a try two minutes from full-time by Chris Walker got the Titans home.

What Are The Odds? Roosters $1.13, Titans $6. Ever since the Roosters put away the Dragons in Monday Night Football there’s been a big go for them to repeat the dose against the Titans with Sportsbet. The Roosters to win by 13+ has received 80 per cent of the money invested in margin betting. Latest odds at Sportsbet.com.au

Match Officials: Referee: Gavin Morris. Assistant Referee: Adam Devcich. Touch Judges: Dave Ryan and Tim Roby. Video Referees: Jared Maxwell and Daniel Irvine.

Televised: Fox Sports – Live 2pm

How We See It: This could go the way everyone expects. The spirit that has been tested all season at the Titans may finally break and the Roosters' backline laden with representative stars will run roughshod on a sunny Sunday in Gosford. Or something extraordinary could happen. Don't expect the Titans to try to win a grinding encounter; they're going to play football and throw things at the Roosters they aren't expecting. Will it be enough? Probably not, but it will be fun to watch. Roosters by 12.

[DIEHARD]

League Unlimited preview http://leagueunlimited.com/news/26368-roosters-v-titans-preview

[DIEHARD]

Michael Jennings is back after serving a one-week suspension for his off-field misdemeanour. Sam Moa also returns from suspension to force Isaac Liu to lock.
http://www.sportal.com.au/league/

[Bayside Titan]

I'll be happy if we score one try for the game.

[JunctionBlock]

I'll be happy if they don't give up.

[JunctionBlock]

Well, this seems insane, lets see how it plays out...
There are several changes to the Aquis Titans side with Ryan James (injured) and Kevin Gordon out of the initial 17 selected on Tuesday.

James Roberts will start the game at five-eighth and Dave Taylor going to the centres. This means Daniel Mortimer will start at hooker and Chad Redman drops to the bench.

Agnatius Paasi and Matt Robinson create a new second row pairing and Matt White comes onto the bench.

Kalifa Faifai Loa comes onto the wing for Kevin Gordon.

So the side is:

Hoffman, Don, Taylor, Macdonald, Faifai Loa, Roberrts, Hoffman, Douglas, Mortimer, Myles (capt), Paasi, Robinson, Pettybourne. Interchange: Ioane, Redman, Burr, White.

Guessing Hoffman isn't playing two positions so maybe Mead at Fullback.

- - - Updated - - -

And the U20's are imploding

[GCTitanFan]

Why is hoffman playing FB and HB????

[shamus]

Why is hoffman playing FB and HB????

Henry said in an interview earlier this morning that due to the injury crisis and lack of quality Titans players available Hoffman will be playing 2 positions.

[JunctionBlock]

Why is hoffman playing FB and HB????

Read the line after the team list. May help with your query.

[K2G]

Myles gives away a stupid penalty roosters score next set. KFFL is worse than Gordon imo. Should've brought in Leva Li.

Mark up another stupid penatly to Myles ...

Threepeat.

[gotitans101_]

Myles again, for f**ks sakes

Is this bloke trying to lose us games?

Myles AGAIN, that's 3 penalties against him now.

[K2G]

Niiice. Love me some Don.

[Nols of the Goldy]

Don is good.

[K2G]

This is a really interesting game of footy in so far as, you rarely see a club field a team without a natural half in the entire 17 ... everything we do in attack and defense looks confused. running on 100% effort.

[JunctionBlock]

How good is it for Paasi to be dominating JWH. Huge game from the young gun, so far....

- - - Updated - - -

So Dave Taylor won't take on a one on one going down the sideline? Does he not know how big he is. Come in and hit Cordner FFS

[K2G]

how does Dave Taylor get taken over the sideline? FFS...

[DIEHARD]

OK I'm watching. 12-4 Roosters. 30min in.

[JunctionBlock]

how does Dave Taylor get taken over the sideline? FFS...

And then gets up laughing. Which allows the Roosters to score in the following set of 6.

[K2G]

And then gets up laughing. Which allows the Roosters to score in the following set of 6.

His next run from deep in our half when we're dying for go forward; slow and sideways ... see ya Dave!

[DIEHARD]

Oh FFS right on the half time siren. :mad:

[JunctionBlock]

Our right side defence is too chaotic. Too much being asked of Roberts. No one knows where they should be, communication is out the window. Getting shredded.

[teke]

Nice forward pass on the half time buzzer

[Boonarga]

Roberts is a turnstile today.

[Mexican titan]

Horrible mistake to give them the ball on halftime. Would have copped 12-4 with the lack of ball but that try kills it. First glance i thouht he pass was forward but hem definitely hrew it back out of the hands.

[DIEHARD]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v483/diehard2/rootit_zpsoynf24iu.jpg

[K2G]

Roberts is a turnstile today.

We were always on a hiding to nothing today. Henry should've rested Roberts this week and went full on youth policy.

Really like Paasi's efforts today. Him and Mead are our best so far. Nene and Chadman also looking good again.

[JunctionBlock]

Experiment over. Get some stability back. Leave Chadman out there for the remainder, Mortimer in the halves and work your forwards on a normal rotation. Perhaps assign the responsibility of kicking to someone.

How far away is Elgey from returning?

[gotitans101_]

Experiment over. Get some stability back. Leave Chadman out there for the remainder, Mortimer in the halves and work your forwards on a normal rotation. Perhaps assign the responsibility of kicking to someone.

How far away is Elgey from returning?

Says round 18 on the NRL casualty ward. So much for not as bad as first thought...

[teke]

This Titans team has some good qualities, it's a pity this 2nd half is going to be hard to watch

[JunctionBlock]

Perhaps we could use the sun to our advantage in the second half..... just trying to be positive.

[lonegull]

I still can't fathom how Matt White gets picked he has had 4 runs today and every time he has lost ground he dead set offers nothing

[K2G]

Daniel Mortimer having a Daniel Mortimer of a game today

[Hail Sezer]

How about Mortimer's last 5 minutes

[JunctionBlock]

Mortimer has forgotten he's a Titan. Drop ball, dropped ball, dropped ball and lucky to get a soft penalty and then lets them walk through him in defence. Goose of the week candidate.

[Hail Sezer]

How injured is Roberts? only just got in front of the TV

[JunctionBlock]

Forward pass? Really? Wow.

- - - Updated - - -


How injured is Roberts? only just got in front of the TV

He hurt what appeared to be his knee later in the first half but got up and played the ball. Not sure what else he may have done.

- - - Updated - - -

Ideally Myles and Mortimer will collide and take each other out then we may have a better showing.

[K2G]

How's the reverse swing from Roberts sideline conversion! Legend

[teke]

Roberts conversion = bouvengs golf driver

[JunctionBlock]

I wonder if Henry still has Bellamy's phone number and can give him a call regarding taking White off our hands.

[gotitans101_]

god dammit Burr..learn to hold onto the ball dude!

[teke]

Mead just pumped Rts

[JunctionBlock]

Was anyone else hoping Roberts was going to run 95m off that last set, if that's what you call it.

[K2G]

Worst game of footy all year?

[teke]

Worst game of footy all year?its not boring though

[Mexican titan]

What an appalling standard 2nd half. Fortunately for us. This second half is the worst standard i have seen for years but at least we have an excuse.

[JunctionBlock]

Worst game for the Roosters. They are disgraceful. We are spectacularly terrible but funny to watch.

[DIEHARD]

Sweet we got the ball back, let's make use of it.

[DIEHARD]

OK... I spoke too soon....

[gotitans101_]

onya Meady, **** Jennings

[DIEHARD]

Well just as long as we can hold out. We lose, but it wasn't a thrashing. We were bad but the Roosters were too.

[Mexican titan]

Didnt think it was possible but the game is getting worse.

[JunctionBlock]

Who kicked on the third???? Been taking lessons from DT obviously.

[gotitans101_]

if we have our halves we win this game, wow

[JunctionBlock]

We have an ability to make other teams play at their worst, that's for sure.

[lonegull]

Great effort by most of the players today, passi was great mead showed why he should be fullback and nene is going to be a top buy, if one of our normal halves play today we probably would of one with a decent kicking game

[Mexican titan]

if we have our halves we win this game, wow

I think the roosters might have taken the game a bit more seriously if we were at strength.
Just shows how crucial that try on half time was.

[DIEHARD]

Oh... I want to cry, that'd have been a beauty if he put it down.

Myle's 200th milestone becomes another Titans gravestone.

Our playmakers can't come back soon enough.

[gotitans101_]

Mortimer is so average, tackles a lot but really doesn't do much else. Hoff can't kick or pass but at least he busts the line a fair bit. I'd actually move him out to the centres when our halves come back, but then again we have Nene and Roberts out there already, so I'm not sure what else we can do with him.

[Hail Sezer]

Haha what just happened.

They gave it a crack. Mead is incredible. Plays with his heart on his sleeve.

[karnage]

I find it hilarious that the Roosters kept Daniel Tupou and off loaded Nene MacDOnald to us - on probably less than half of the money. Tupou was disgraceful today. We were on a flogging to nothing today but showed real character.

[K2G]

Hard to be mad at the team on the field today. All things considered, we did better than we had any right too.

Mead should ALWAYS wear #1 for us imo.

[DIEHARD]

Depleted Titans brave in defeat
http://www.titans.com.au/

The Aquis Gold Coast Titans, down 14 players from their squad and eight from their winning teams from side earlier in the season, took the fourth-placed Sydney Roosters right to the wire on the Central Coast this afternoon.

Down on hookers and halves which sae usual centre James Roberts start at five-eighth and fullback/centre Josh Hoffman at halfback, the Titans went close to posting a try in the final 10 minutes that would have put the Roosters under immense pressure but didn’t quite have the finesse to get over the line.

Behind 18-4 at half-time, the Titans scored the only try of the second half in a strong defensive effort against the all-star opposition.

The Titans could have had a dream start in the sixth minute after David Mead forced a line drop-out when he caught Daniel Tupou in goal from a Josh Hoffman bomb. From the ensuing set Nene Macdonald stood in a tackle and pass to Hoffman inside but the ball didn’t make its mark.

Instead the Roosters received a penalty and headed upfield and in the next set Shaun Kenny-Dowall was over in the right corner after a nice pass from Roger Tuivasa-Sheck. James Maloney converted from touch for a 6-0 early lead.

The Titans defended two sets well before Dave Taylor played at an inside pass from Tupou but knocked on and gave the Roosters a scrum feed. But from the set Anthony Don latched onto a pass from James Maloney and ran 90 metres to score to make it 6-4 with Daniel Mortimer missing the conversion kick.

The Roosters had 60 per cent of possession in the first 30 minutes but the Titans defended well. But NSW Origin centre Michael Jennings crossed after James Maloney held up a good ball for him and he beat three players from 20 metres.

Maloney converted from the left touchline this time to open up a 12-4 lead.

Yet the Titans continued to defend strongly and get through sets fine and pushed the Roosters on their line towards the end of the half. But the ending to their sets were not good enough, showing how much Aidan Sezer was missed, and Dave Mead ran from dummy half and was caught with just 30 seconds remaining.

From the turnover the Roosters shifted the ball left on the second tackle and Maloney put Michael Jennings into the clear and Maloney backed up to score under the posts in the last play of the half.

It was an absolute heart-breaker after such an encouraging effort in the first 40 minutes, with Maloney’s conversion making it 18-4 at the break.

The Titans started the second half with James Roberts, who took a knock to his left leg in the first half, moving back to right centre and Dave Taylor starting off the bench.

They narrowed the gap 14 minutes into the second half. After squandering possession with fumbles on the two previous set, Daniel Mortimer put in a neat grubber kick on the left edge and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck muffed the clean-up and Nene Macdonald came up with his first try for the Titans against his former club.

Roberts took over the kicking duties and landed the goal from 5m in from the left touchline to make the score 18-10 to the Roosters and the Titans were certainly in the contest with 25 minutes remaining.

But both teams made constant errors after that and there was no score until James Maloney kicked a penalty goal after the full-time siren had sounded.

The Titans’ defence was full of merit and effort and they snuffed out several Roosters raids, and forced them into error, with Agnatius Paasi particularly aggressive and willing, along with Eddy Pettybourne.

In the end it was finesse on the last tackle particularly that cost the Titans mounting more points, with the ball not getting to the designated kicker several times, which was a legacy of regular hookers and halves being absent and Aidan Sezer’s dominant voice being absent.

Roosters 18 (Tupou, Jennings, Maloney tries; Maloney goals) beat Titans (Don, Macdonald tries; Roberts goal) at Central Coast Stadium. Crowd: 12,569.

[Geeman]

Pretty good effort all round under the circumstances, but Myles is an absolute liability, he was responsible for most of our penalties today, and was left grabbing air a few times in defence. His hitups were slow and soft again, but I guess he wants to save his effort for origin.

[Nols of the Goldy]

Pretty scrappy game but was expecting a lot worse considering we have so many players out injured. Mead was great as usual and should be our fullback all the time. Taylor, well what can one say. :doh: McDonald looks to be a great buy and Passi was also good in a painful at times to watch game. Hope Roberts is OK but the bye and then the next game being Monday night against Flippers team will hopefully give the guys time to rest. Isn't Bird back in Round 18 and also Elgey?

[JunctionBlock]

Mortimer is so average, tackles a lot but really doesn't do much else. Hoff can't kick or pass but at least he busts the line a fair bit. I'd actually move him out to the centres when our halves come back, but then again we have Nene and Roberts out there already, so I'm not sure what else we can do with him.

Wing for Gordon or Fai Fai Loa I'm guessing. Or push MacDonald to the wing and play Hoffy in the centres. When we are full strength we will be looking formidable.

[ozynorts]

Lots of heart shown but it really showed how much we missed Elgey and Sezer. If we had either of them I think we might have won that game as the Roosters were terrible and there to be plucked.

[RenegadeGC]

Bring GL onto the wing for either Gordon/KFFL cant get any worse than whats happening here. Haha at least he will have a go.

[TITAN PETE]

Seriously can we not find anyone better than KFFL to fill the wing spot I would prefer Taylor on 1 leg than him...Greg L or Tyronne Roberts would be a long way in front of any of them..

Agnassius was fantastic today

[Titan4Life]

Expected us to lose by a lot more so credit to the boys (well, most of them anyway) for the effort. Honestly, Mead is really impressing me at fullback and I do think he is our best choice there. Has great positioning for kicks and desperate defence and also never stops trying 110%. Nene was good again and I think he will be a part of our backline for years to come. Another player I thought was outstanding was Paasi who really stepped up and put some solid shots on JWH. Finally, is there any way we can ship Myles off IMMEDIATELY to Manly. Our so called 'courageous' skipper gave away 4 penalties today and is just bloody useless. Anyone doubting the club for replacing him with Shillington obviously haven't watched many our games this year.

Overall, disappointing loss but hopefully some of our injured boys will be back after the buy. Go Titans :thumbsup:

[DavidBouveng]

i have been saying this week that mead at the back with Don and Roberts one centre wing combo and Nene and Hoffman the other. not too fussed on which plays centre or wing out of Nene or Hoff. let them switch around during the game like Radradra and Taka do.

that is a good backline,

Tyrone is very much on outer at Knights...we have 2 days to get him here super dooper cheap for last 10 rounds to see if he is an option for next year.

Gordon is not worth half of his contract. Him and the Zip must have awesome coffee catchups laughing about how many horseshoes are wedged up there backsides.

[TitanSam]

i have been saying this week that mead at the back with Don and Roberts one centre wing combo and Nene and Hoffman the other. not too fussed on which plays centre or wing out of Nene or Hoff. let them switch around during the game like Radradra and Taka do.

that is a good backline,

Tyrone is very much on outer at Knights...we have 2 days to get him here super dooper cheap for last 10 rounds to see if he is an option for next year.

Gordon is not worth half of his contract. Him and the Zip must have awesome coffee catchups laughing about how many horseshoes are wedged up there backsides. Tyrone Roberts?? Noooo wayy

[DavidBouveng]

Tyrone Roberts?? Noooo wayy

as opposed to morts or james roberts?

whats the harm in having a look if he is cheap enough? it has worked for passi, petty, and maybe Redman.

i think buying more players at reduced prices and then some stand up and deliver, to which you then reward and increase contract is better than our past model of buying name players and finding later they dont live up to it.

[JunctionBlock]

The only problem with grabbing T Roberts is that we potentially free up the Knights cap for furthering their bid on someone like Hodkinson. If we can get a halves pairing for Rd 18 then I'd say steer clear. Hopefully LG is good to go and I highly doubt Sezer will be but possibly Fogarty? Not sure when all these injured players are due back.

[Mexican titan]

Tyrone is very much on outer at Knights...we have 2 days to get him here super dooper cheap for last 10 rounds to see if he is an option for next year.



No, No ,no, and NO.

In my view we were never going to make the finals this year so let's just get through with who is here and not go after duds. Use the year to work out who is worth keeping and save the cash for better buys.

[TitanSam]

No, No ,no, and NO.

In my view we were never going to make the finals this year so let's just get through with who is here and not go after duds. Use the year to work out who is worth keeping and save the cash for better buys. couldn't have said it better myself. Tbh Signing roberts would be similiar to signing Sandow. I have written us off this year and I am more than happy blooding guys like Fogarty or Hazard than signing Roberts.

[Bayside Titan]

No, No ,no, and NO.

In my view we were never going to make the finals this year so let's just get through with who is here and not go after duds. Use the year to work out who is worth keeping and save the cash for better buys.

100% agree. No Roberts. Prefer to run with Fogarty.

[Hail Sezer]

If you lot need cheering up:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EnO-vmvBJ-4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[teke]

That pass from Jennings to Maloney on half time was just lolol forward

This relative momentum bull**** ppl use saying it was backwards out of the hand.

Jimmy the jet showed a perfect example of how to pass backwards on the fly vs the dogs not this mud Jennings pass

[DavidBouveng]

That pass from Jennings to Maloney on half time was just lolol forward

This relative momentum bull**** ppl use saying it was backwards out of the hand.

Jimmy the jet showed a perfect example of how to pass backwards on the fly vs the dogs not this mud Jennings pass

teke been hacked.

nice to meet you.

and that Jimmy the Jet pass was clean as fuark. gave him the halfback job two weeks later lol

[teke]

teke been hacked.

nice to meet you.

and that Jimmy the Jet pass was clean as fuark. gave him the halfback job two weeks later lolI only deal in the truth.

Just like Jimmy's conversion today looking like one of your clean Drives off the tee

[Titanic]

Not too bad fellas … watched it live straight off a plane from China at a hotel near JFK and didn't go to sleep.

Paasi great. Teke, I mean Mead, great except for his fluffed groin-catch. Myles must be suffering withdrawal symptoms and Taylor is just a dumb-ar$ed deadsh1t. If he wasn't a million kilos he wouldn't even make a QCup team.

On the halfback thing, we don't need a free spirit, we need a stodgy old head pushing the team around.

[shamus]

On the halfback thing, we don't need a free spirit, we need a stodgy old head pushing the team around.

Peter Wallace.....I know he is a 7 and he is contracted to 2016 but rock steady and a leader.

Here it comes..

[Smakked]

Wasnt a bad game for use we payed ok at some stages. Roosters made alot of errors which was unusual.
Manly game should be good, will Sezer be back ?

[nimud]

That pass from Jennings to Maloney on half time was just lolol forward

This relative momentum bull**** ppl use saying it was backwards out of the hand.

Jimmy the jet showed a perfect example of how to pass backwards on the fly vs the dogs not this mud Jennings pass

I was directly in line with it, and so was the ref. I was completely stunned that the ref said play-on!

Right at that critical time just before halftime.

What was equally as stunning, was the near loss in the 20s. I don't know how a team can go in the space of 10 mins from winning 34-10 to losing 34-35, and fluke a try at the death to save themselves!

[Mexican titan]

I was directly in line with it, and so was the ref. I was completely stunned that the ref said play-on!

Right at that critical time just before halftime.

What was equally as stunning, was the near loss in the 20s. I don't know how a team can go in the space of 10 mins from winning 34-10 to losing 34-35, and fluke a try at the death to save themselves!

Rather than the suggested forward pass we probably should blame the turnover we gave them about 30 secs before.

I'm sure most people know the rules of a forward pass but from my recollection the commentators didn't mention it. I also noticed the ref who was in line as Nimud waved his arms to play on. There was one replay where it looked quite clearly as it came backwards out of the hands, which is the rule.

It is almost impossible to throw a ball that travels backwards across the ground if your running flat out. For those who are fit enough grab a footy and run flat out and throw the ball just over your shoulder. You'll find it will land further upfield than where you let go of the ball. Simple really - well not quite but that's how the rule was explained to me years ago.

[Brock O'Brien]

Hey guys, would be appreciated if you could give my match report a read http://www.nothingbutleague.com/nrl-match-review-sydney-roosters-20-gold-coast-titans-10/. I'm hoping for a career in sports journalism so I'm just writing to earn experience at the moment.

[nimud]

The only problem with grabbing T Roberts is that we potentially free up the Knights cap for furthering their bid on someone like Hodkinson. If we can get a halves pairing for Rd 18 then I'd say steer clear. Hopefully LG is good to go and I highly doubt Sezer will be but possibly Fogarty? Not sure when all these injured players are due back.

I've seen a lot of Tyrone Roberts over the years in Newie, and one thing I know is he is a confidence player, who rarely takes the initiative if their is a more dominate half.

During the Wayne Bennett seasons in Newie, he probably had a dozen games where he took the lead and won the game, but this season he is a shot duck with a ton of Knights fans pointing the finger at him for the Knights current performances.

So Roberts to the Titans? - no bloody thanks!!

[teke]

Rather than the suggested forward pass we probably should blame the turnover we gave them about 30 secs before.

I'm sure most people know the rules of a forward pass but from my recollection the commentators didn't mention it. I also noticed the ref who was in line as Nimud waved his arms to play on. There was one replay where it looked quite clearly as it came backwards out of the hands, which is the rule.

It is almost impossible to throw a ball that travels backwards across the ground if your running flat out. For those who are fit enough grab a footy and run flat out and throw the ball just over your shoulder. You'll find it will land further upfield than where you let go of the ball. Simple really - well not quite but that's how the rule was explained to me years ago.explained and understood many times, jimmy did it easy.

Manly got dusted by a horrendous eels pass in 2009 that literally went 10mtrs forward.

[Surfers66]

I liked the look of Burr, Passi & Petty.
Douglas was solid as usual.
Taylor has to go.

We still need that dynamic edge runner on the right with James left.

Bird to slot in at 13 most likely but I wouldnt mind seeing him go back to 6. If he flops. nothing is lost (this year)

[DavidBouveng]

explained and understood many times, jimmy did it easy.

Manly got dusted by a horrendous eels pass in 2009 that literally went 10mtrs forward.

cant be worse than the pass that won NZ the tri nations in 2010 i think? the one from nightingale or SKD that went MORE than diagonally forward, and more metres forward than it did across. that was most blatant miss i've ever seen.

[teke]

cant be worse than the pass that won NZ the tri nations in 2010 i think? the one from nightingale or SKD that went MORE than diagonally forward, and more metres forward than it did across. that was most blatant miss i've ever seen.that was a bad one but nothing beats the eels pass in the manly game.

[DavidBouveng]

that was a bad one but nothing beats the eels pass in the manly game.

i shall need to see this pass. Sounds like it was thrown by Tom Brady?