Double trouble mars return of Scott Prince at Gold Coast Titans training
ASHLEY Harrison wore the look of a man who was sick and tired of injury rehabilitation.
It was an expression he became familiar with last year and it returned again yesterday as the Queensland Origin star hobbled away from Gold Coast Titans training clutching his right hamstring.
After a summer of sweat and hard work, a leg strain is the last thing Harrison needed as he fought back from the elbow surgery that ruined his 2011 campaign. He wasn't the only casualty. Promising fullback Javarn White suffered a corked leg from a collision during opposed ball work and was unable to complete the session.
The double blow countered what should have been a promising day for the Titans with halfback Scott Prince finally given the all clear from specialists to resume contact work after a five-month recovery from a broken arm.
Coach John Cartwright said he had been impressed with Prince's work in the pre-season and was looking forward to what the skipper would offer in 2012.
"He has not missed one minute of the pre-season and he is as hungry as I've ever seen him," Cartwright said.
"I am really excited about how he has trained and excited about how he is going to perform this year."
After the worst season in the club's history, Cartwright has shaken up the Titans' training regime by bringing in multiple specialist consultants and sports psychologists to ensure the team is physically and mentally prepared.
Veteran prop Luke Bailey said that, with new recruits and rising stars, the Titans had the best depth in his time at the club and were capable of returning to the top echelon of the NRL in 2012.
"Some blokes are probably going to get their nose out of joint a little bit because we do have a lot of push for positions but that makes for healthy competition which we needed," Bailey said.
"I think we were down to our last player last year.
"Now we have plenty of push for positions and a lot of talent coming through the ranks, especially in my position we've got about 10 front-rowers.
"It's not making my job any easier but I'm looking forward to having those quality players around me."
Bailey said the pre-season had also united the team, with friction in the group emerging at times during the club's dreadful wooden spoon season.
"I found last year the poorer we played, the further apart we drifted as a team," said Bailey. "So basically the number one priority was trying to get the team together and as tight as possible."
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