Round 6: Gold Coast Titans vs St George-Illawarra Dragons

[DIEHARD]

We had every opportunity to win, but ultimately did no deserve to. Zillman was close to scoring and Tags just had to look to his left for support. Bailey was our best out there and tried his heart out, Hendo as well. We really lack organisation, kicking and creativity. I don't believe that Bird is the type of 5/8th our team needs.

Our wingers are one of our best weapons, yet we have seen very little of them in 2010. We also need to work on better kicking, get repeat sets and pile the pressure on the opposition.

Losing at home, is a shot to the heart. That's for sure!

[DIEHARD]

NRL match stats -> http://live.nrlstats.com/matches/nrl/match3187.html

[titansrawesome]

hope prince is back next week, we are screwed without him because we cant score, we need offloads and pass the ball to the backs every 2-3 sets, i heard that o dwyer is ment to be back next week too.

[Sydney Titans Fanatic]

bloody dragons supporters walking around in surfers paradise with there red and white gear on...Cavill ave looked like bloody woolongong

[GCT_89]

hope prince is back next week, we are screwed without him because we cant score, we need offloads and pass the ball to the backs every 2-3 sets, i heard that o dwyer is ment to be back next week too.

we seemed fine last week.....

[Sydney Titans Fanatic]

Salary cap dramas that threaten to derail the club and bury them under mountains of debt and legal documents, the Titans can manage. A wall of white-and-red jumpers that weren't letting them through under any circumstance? That's another story.

This should have been the night of the Titans. Last Friday, they sucker-punched the champs, beating an off-key Melbourne Storm that, for once, failed to hold onto a half-time lead.

Then came the news the club had been waiting for, although managing director Michael Searle insists he knew it was coming all along. The stain of the salary cap accusations, which involved co-captain Scott Prince, a grumpy builder and a mysterious house, was lifted after the NRL cleared the Titans of any wrongdoing.

With another premiership fancy coming to Skilled Park, formerly known as the "Temple of Boom" in another rugby league marketing ploy gone wrong, the stage was set for a triumphant end to the affair.

The Dragons of St George-Illawarra weren't in on the act. Fresh from beating the Broncos meted out last week, they polished off south-east Queensland's remaining side with poise and polish to the dominating tune of 19-6.

The almost-clean sheet will impress Wayne Bennett as much as another two competition points. Only occasionally did the Titans threaten to turn a bulge in the wall into an incursion of any dangerous proportions.

When they eventually did, three minutes from the end, it was a bash-and-barge effort by prop Michael Henderson from just a few metres out. The crowd of 21,336 fans cheered. Titans coach John Cartwright just thundered down the steps towards the sheds with a grim look on his face.

If last weeked proved the Titans don't need Scott Prince to win, this week showed how much easier it is when he's around. The brilliant number seven is nursing a broken hand and not due back until May 3, when the Panthers head to the Gold Coast.

He can't mend fast enough. Preston Campbell is an able deputy and will try until they turn out the lights. But Prince's finesse comes in handy and the Titans are battling without his astute and decisive kicking game. And then there is Mat Rogers' injury, sustained in the 26th minute against the Dragons.

Greg Bird is learning the art of the five-eighth but one try assist in six games shows his strength is running, not passing. He tried desperately to bash his bulky body through the wall at Skilled Park and was met with the stiffest of resistance every time.

Perhaps more concerning for the Titans are the empty seats in the stands. A massive contingent of Dragons supporters made most of the noise at the southern end, drowning out what little the home supporters had to cheer about.

The two best sides in the NRL in consecutive weeks has failed to fill Skilled Park. For a part of Queensland that was bereft of a side for years and is now blessed with a very good one - that plays in the second-best stadium in the game - the Coast punters should learn to appreciate what they have in their midst.
smh

[Sydney Titans Fanatic]

[/B]The two best sides in the NRL in consecutive weeks has failed to fill Skilled Park. For a part of Queensland that was bereft of a side for years and is now blessed with a very good one - that plays in the second-best stadium in the game - the Coast punters should learn to appreciate what they have in their midst.[/B]
smh

have to somehow agree with this comment

[DIEHARD]

I certainly agree. Anything under 24k for that game isn't good enough. I don't understand how we only got so few more than last week.

[titansrawesome]

we seemed fine last week.....

we got lucky, trust me the sea eagles are already laughing at us, we need to do that stuff i said before in attack, thats why teams hate defending against the tigers and warriors every year, you saw the game right? no one was deep, we looked bunched up, the commentators said we looked crap with the ball and too bunched up. This is the nrl's tightest year ever so we need to fix these problems, if the reds can do it then we should be able to as well.

[Supergoose]

You're comparing us with the Reds? I don't think things have ever been that dire for the Titans. We are losing the stat that matters most and which has the biggest impact on the final score and that is errors. If you look at the stats we had less completions but made more metres than the Dragons. We made fewer tackles. The stats don't show that the Dragons dominated us, it showed we handed it to them. If we can hold on to the ball we will win. There are far too many pressurized passes being thrown where the heat is on the ball recipient to make a catch under the glare of one and two defenders. This shows that the passera and runners aren't even considering what defence is in front of them. Prince fixes this a little, but we need to give ourselves some more depth and let the ball sing a little more to ease the pressure on the blokes who have to make a catch.

[bigjim]

If it wasn't clear before it certainly is now.
We are officially the Storms bogey team and the Dragons are ours.

[titansrawesome]

You're comparing us with the Reds? I don't think things have ever been that dire for the Titans. We are losing the stat that matters most and which has the biggest impact on the final score and that is errors. If you look at the stats we had less completions but made more metres than the Dragons. We made fewer tackles. The stats don't show that the Dragons dominated us, it showed we handed it to them. If we can hold on to the ball we will win. There are far too many pressurized passes being thrown where the heat is on the ball recipient to make a catch under the glare of one and two defenders. This shows that the passera and runners aren't even considering what defence is in front of them. Prince fixes this a little, but we need to give ourselves some more depth and let the ball sing a little more to ease the pressure on the blokes who have to make a catch.

you completely failed to understand what i was saying, ii know we have never been as bad as the old reds, and even when we do hang on to the ball we cant score, dan hunt knocks on from restart, we waste the whole set with a lousy kick at the end, one point we had 3 consecutive sets on dragons line, waste the whole 3 sets and they go down the other end in one set and soward scores.

[Dragons]

I certainly agree. Anything under 24k for that game isn't good enough. I don't understand how we only got so few more than last week.

Cost! it getting to expensive for the average family to go to a game or two. Blame that on Titan's management. Lower the price and get rid of the ridiculous food and drink prices. More people will come to the stadium and the crowds will be bigger. Just read the people's comments in the Bulletin and you will see it the price that keeps them away. I'm not looking forward to when the other game starts here next year.

[Steelers]

I can't believe how many Dragons supporters were there. It seemed like it was very close to a 50/50 crowd. And a dominant performance (greatly helped by a poor performance by the Titans) further helped to silence the Titans contingent.

We could have easily racked up a cricket score but made errors. Thankfully you guys didn't offer much resistance so our errors weren't too crucial.

[daveyk]

the prices may seem high... but also dont foget that the price of the ticket also includes your transport to and from the game...

food and drink prices are high but you get that even at say the ekka or gc show...