Round 11: TITANS vs NZ WARRIORS

[C-Whiz]

Yeah well, cant see us winning another game all season

Pessimistic much?
I still see us winning this game. It's Meady's 100th. Gotta keep the faith.

[Toads]

I don't blame Zillman for Cartwirghts man-love for him.

It's reminiscent of the relationship Gould and Fitler had back in the early nineties.

[C-Whiz]

It's reminiscent of the relationship Gould and Fitler had back in the early nineties.

If Zillman was Fittler I don't think anyone would be complaining. Wouldn't be too worried about Sezer being out for a few months either.

[Mt Smart]

Updates from the Warriors side of things :

http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/league/...hnson-in-doubt

[Hail Sezer]

Alby and Johnson both out is sure to lose some crowd numbers..sorry DH!

[DIEHARD]

Alby and Johnson both out is sure to lose some crowd numbers..sorry DH!

That is a damn shame. But can't be helped.

Speaking of Fitler, I wish we had a player like him, he was something else.

[DIEHARD]

Johnson's young replacement may face Titans

A groin strain has Warriors playmaker Shaun Johnson in doubt for this weekend's clash with the Gold Coast Titans.

"He's travelling with us tomorrow, he has got a little bit of a slight groin strain but we expect him to play," says coach Andrew McFadden.

But if Johnson is not fit, 3 News understands 18-year-old Tuimoala Lolohea will make his debut on the Gold Coast.

Lolohea was impressive for the Junior Warriors with his 22 tries last season earning him player of the year honours.

With the Titans missing several key players through injury suspension and Origin duty, this opportunity could be tailor-made for the young speedster.

"They're going to field a team with a lot of enthusiasm with all the young guys that will come in, so it will be pretty challenging for the first 20 or 30 minutes," says Warriors hooker Nathan Friend.

McFadden will have his share of old heads to count on with Jacob Lillyman missing out on Queensland Origin selection, meaning the 30-year-old prop has got plenty to prove.

"It would've been nice to get another crack, but wasn't to be, so just looking forward to going out this weekend and letting rip for the Warriors," he says.

The team should be confident as they go from a narrow loss to the table-topping Bulldogs last week to facing a Gold Coast side that has slipped from the top down to seventh.

Read more: http://www.3news.co.nz/

[DIEHARD]

Gold Coast’s David Mead has been shifted to centre for the Titans clash against the Warriors

THIS truly is the David v Goliath battle of the NRL.

Gold Coast’s David Mead, dumped from fullback for William Zillman in his 100th NRL game, has been shifted to a centre position he has rarely played in to oppose New Zealand giant Konrad Hurrell at Cbus Super Stadium on Saturday night.

If the NRL media guide is to be believed, 92kg Mead gives away 10kg to Hurrell and both are the same height.

Reality would suggest the 22-year-old Warriors star may have trimmed a few kilos off his actual weight for the sake of publication because he is nothing short of a beast in full flight.

“I wonder why everyone keeps telling me that,” Mead said when Hurrell’s name was brought up.

“Obviously he is a great player, massive, he loves breaking tackles and running over people so I’ve got a big job.”

Two weeks ago Hurrell made headlines for a sex tape leaked on the internet but for rugby league defenders the real R-rated video is of him destroying Canberra later that week where he amassed four line breaks, 14 tackle busts and 222 metres from 14 runs.

Mead knows when it comes to Hurrell he must cut him down before he gathers a full head of steam.

“Don’t give him too much time to run up,” Mead said.

“I think that is mainly where opposition get into trouble, giving him time to run. We just have to look to shut that down.’’

The decision to shift Mead from fullback, where has thrived for several weeks and starred for NSW Country, is a big call by coach John Cartwright and an obvious bid to spark Zillman back to life.

Zillman will be Titans captain this week but has struggled to inject himself at centre since returning from a hamstring injury the past two weeks so Cartwright has rolled the dice with a selection gamble.

Mead has copped the positional change on the chin and is excited to reach his 100 NRL game milestone at home on Saturday.

“I never thought I would get to 100 so it’s a massive honour for me,” Mead said.

“Growing up as a kid I wanted to play a couple of NRL games just to tell everyone I played in the game but to reach 100 is pretty special.”

NRL chief executive Dave Smith attended a Titans board meeting yesterday and gave the club’s new off-field direction, including a new board structure, his seal of approval.

“All the indicators are very positive,” Smith said. “There are always opportunities but the board are well ahead.’’

http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/nrl/

[DIEHARD]

Titans v Warriors
Saturday, 5.30pm Cbus Super Stadium

These two sides have had vastly contrasting starts to the 2014 season but now find themselves slowly heading in the opposite direction to where they were a month ago. The Warriors lost their first two games of the season and then pulled off a massive upset by defeating the Cowboys in Townsville in Round 3. After smashing the Tigers in Round 4, they then went on a three-game losing run before snapping their streak in another unlikely place against the Storm in Melbourne.

So while the 12th-placed Warriors seem to be on the up after two wins from their past three starts, the Titans are now quickly dropping down the NRL ladder and are currently in seventh spot, when only five weeks ago they were competition leaders after six rounds.

Injury and suspension to key names haven't helped the Titans' cause, with big names such as Greg Bird, William Zillman, Aidan Sezer, Albert Kelly and Ashley Harrison all missing games over the last five rounds. In that time the Titans have only won two of those games, contributing to their steady slide down the ladder.

One thing saving the Titans from slipping outside the top eight is their defence because they dead-set struggle to score points. They are the second worst side in the NRL for tries scored with only 27 four-pointers so far this season, which is equal with the last-placed Sharks and only one try behind the Knights who are 15th on the ladder.

If you overlook the two heavy losses against the Tigers (42-12) in Round 2 and Souths (40-18) in Round 9, the Titans have only conceded an average of 14 points per game. This is the sole reason that they are still remain two competition points shy of the top four, although their points difference is slowly taking a hit, now down to -27.

In team changes, Albert Kelly returns to the Titans this weekend for Aidan Sezer who has torn his pectoral and faces a minimum of 12 weeks on the sideline. Co-captain Nate Myles is on Origin duty with veteran Luke Bailey shifting to the starting side and Mark Ioane coming onto the bench. Ben Ridge replaces Cody Nelson on the bench with Nelson dropping back to 18th man.

Ashley Harrison (neck) and Kevin Gordon (knee) have failed to recover from injuries sustained prior to last Friday's clash against the Broncos, while Zillman has been named captain and will return to the centres.

For the Warriors, Kevin Locke comes into the starting side on the wing after starting last weekend from the bench. Ngani Laumape shifts from the wing to the centres with Ben Henry moving to the second row. Ben Matulino returns to his more regular position of prop from the back row while Siliva Havili comes onto the bench for Sione Lousi. Rookie prop Nathaniel Peteru has been named as 18th man for the trip to the glitter strip.

In milestones, David Mead makes his 100th NRL appearance having debuted in Round 13, 2009. For the Warriors, skipper Simon Mannering plays his 199th match and Shaun Johnson is five goals short of 100 in the NRL.

Watch Out Titans: There wasn't much more that Warriors warhorse Jacob Lillyman could have done to earn an Origin recall after a stellar beginning to the 2014 season. With the Maroons staying loyal to back-rowers Ben Te'o and Chris McQueen, Lillyman could be forgiven for feeling slightly aggravated that he didn't receive a phone call from Mal Meninga, or even made the squad as 18th or 19th man. The 30-year-old will now be itching to prove to the Queensland selectors that they made a mistake by not picking him and it all starts with Saturday's clash against the Titans. Having played six games for the Maroons after debuting way back in 2006, the Warriors forward has produced some impressive numbers so far this season, averaging 23 tackles and 140 metres per game. Not noted for doing the flashy things, Lillyman is ever reliable and rarely makes a mistake; this can be attributed to not making a single offload this season, therefore cutting down on his errors, which number just two this season.

Watch Out Warriors: Another victim of Queensland's 'pick and stick' policy is Dave Taylor. The 'Coal Train' looks to be finally fulfilling the potential that was recognised during his fledging days at the Broncos with a series of eye-catching performances for the Titans this year. His numbers this season have been hard to ignore; he has notched up an average of 15 runs per game for 135 metres. He also averages 14 tackles per game and has made 10 offloads and 17 tackle breaks over 10 matches. The one area that lets the 25-year-old down is his handling errors, with a total of 12 so far this season. The Warriors will need to be wary of Taylor, with Titans coach John Cartwright sure to have his leading charger raring to go in the absence of Greg Bird and Ashley Harrison.

Plays To Watch: The Titans' right-edge combination of Brad Takairangi and Anthony Don is still in its infancy and was only conceived out of necessity due to the injury suffered by Will Zillman in Round 3 against the Raiders. Now that Zillman is back from injury, the Takairangi-Don partnership continues into its eighth game this weekend against the Warriors. Given that the left-edge partnership of Zillman and Kalifa Faifai Loa only lasted 19 minutes against the Broncos last Friday, the Titans' right-side pair will most likely see more of the ball due to the continuity they've been building over the last seven matches. Stats wise, these two haven't been setting the world on fire, with only four tries between them – all of them going to winger Don. Takairangi has only made one try assist this season which came last week against Brisbane and the only line breaks from this pair have come from Don, with two so far this season. The match-up of Don and Manu Vatuvei will be a fascinating one as 'The Beast' looks to overpower the inexperienced Titans winger.

Where It Will Be Won: Discipline and completion rates. The Titans will be looking for an improvement in their completion rate and the amount of penalties they concede. Currently the Gold Coast are ranked second in the NRL for penalties conceded (85), only one behind the Wests Tigers. Surprisingly they are also ranked second for penalties awarded, but their most unwanted statistic is the amount of errors they concede per game. They are ranked first for errors in this season with an average of 13 per game, at a completion rate of only 69.5 per cent. This is a long way short of the competition best of 79 per cent, currently held by the Storm. The Warriors are also guilty of a poor completion rate, averaging 71.5 per cent. Their nine second half errors against the Dogs last weekend came at crucial times and was the main instigator for the 16-12 loss at Waikato Stadium according to coach Andrew McFadden.

The History: Played 14; Titans 6, Warriors 8. Don't let the head-to-head statistics fool you because the Warriors have won the past six clashes between these sides dating back to 2011. Prior to that the Titans had won six straight games over the Kiwis, although that was between 2008 and 2010 and a lot has changed since then. The Titans have hosted the Warriors eight times at Robina and won on four occasions with their last win coming in Week 1 of the 2010 Finals Series. These sides clashed twice last year with the Warriors prevailing by one point in Round 8 and two points in Round 24.

Match Officials: Referee – Gavin Morris; Assistant Referee – Henry Perenara; Touch Judges – Paul Holland & Adam Reid; Video Referees – Bernard Sutton & Steve Folkes.

Televised: Fox Sports – Live 5.30pm.

Special Offers: Kids get in free in the Eastern Grandstand. Fans can enjoy a family friendly day at the free Titans Fans Zone, featuring face-painting, a rock-climbing wall and interactive photo booth. Also, in a cross-promotion with the Blues Beach Festival, free shuttle buses will leave from the heart of the festival to ferry spectators to and from the game.

The Way We See It: The Warriors had every chance to beat the barking Bulldogs last weekend but shot themselves in the foot with a series of errors after half-time. If they can maintain their discipline and control the ball for longer periods, they should record a comfortable victory over the injury-hit Titans. The return of Albert Kelly will add some spark around the middle of the park for Gold Coast although Shaun Johnson and Sam Tomkins are expected to do the same for the Warriors. Because the Kiwis aren't troubled by Origin, injury or suspension they should have enough class on hand to defeat the Titans away from home. Warriors by 10 points.

Source: http://www.nrl.com

[C-Whiz]

teke, what's the word for mead as a left centre? He gives up a bit in weight, but I'd think he would relish the chance to have a go there. Wrong side, but better than the wing. Doesn;t sound like Dave's too phased about it.

Anyone know what the go is with Brad Tighe? It might have been asked and answered somewhere else, but when is he meant to be coming back?

[Hail Sezer]

teke, what's the word for mead as a left centre? He gives up a bit in weight, but I'd think he would relish the chance to have a go there. Wrong side, but better than the wing. Doesn;t sound like Dave's too phased about it.

Anyone know what the go is with Brad Tighe? It might have been asked and answered somewhere else, but when is he meant to be coming back?

He played forBurleigh in the weekend and will be playing for them again this weekend I'd say. Him, Blair and Roberts are all back in Qcup

[Mt Smart]

All the talk about Hurrell V Mead....I doubt the plan will be for Mead to cover Hurrell one on one.

With Konrad it only takes one Tackler to hit him to slow the train down. Sure he often bumps that first tackler off....but he has a habit of going into barge mode if he gets over the first tackler , as such he will hog the ball and becomes the responsibility of the other defenders to aim up while he's not thinking about passing.

Hurrell is more of a problem running as a conventional back , getting outside his defender , in that situation he's more likely to draw and pass, which is far more dangerous.

The Bulldogs shut Hurrell down , he and Laumape bumped off plenty of people , but thereafter they were stoppable.

Kicking the ball high in the air at Hurrell and Locke is well worth a shot , Hurrell has zero Airial game , Lockes is untested this year...it wasn't flash last year.

The old trick of kicking in behind Manu who has a turning circle like the Queen Mary...is still an option but the Warriors have changed the way they defend that edge so it needs a bit more thought.

Manu historically comes in off his wing, so nowadays he is actually been encouraged to come in. The left edge defenders next to Manu , cover the space behind him and on his outside.

If you Kick behind Manu , or draw him off his wing....Mannering + Tomkins and Townsend have been scrambling to get across behind Manu and it works ( Left edge defensive Stats this year out rank Right edge defensively ).

How teams have overcome that, is by pressuring the line , they draw Tomkins into the center of the park forcing him to back up two tackles in a row......obviously a quick shift to Manu's Wing while Tomkins is pinned in the middle , stops our team from having the numbers on Manu's side.

[DIEHARD]

NRL Round 11 Preview: Gold Coast Titans to suffer v New Zealand Warriors
http://www.sportal.co.nz/

The Gold Coast Titans are hosting the New Zealand Warriors on Saturday, May 24, in round 11 of the NRL, and we expect the home side to struggle.

Who: Gold Coast Titans v New Zealand Warriors
When: Saturday, May 24 – 7.30pm NZT
Where: Cbus Super Stadium
Form Guide:
Titans: WLWWWWLWLL
Warriors: LLWWLLLWWL

Things You Need to Know:
The Titans will be without young five-eighth Aiden Sezer for a while after a potentially season-ending pectoral tear against Broncos last round. They have also lost Nate Myles to Origin duty whilst fellow co-captain Greg Bird is still out suspended. However they do regain livewire halfback Albert Kelly. The Warriors have lost prop Sione Lousi to a knee injury so Siliva Havili comes onto the bench. After starting the season so well the Titans have only one win in their last four matches so will be desperate to get back in the winning circle. The Warriors have become a bogie team for the Titans in recent seasons having won their last six encounters.

Reason to Watch:
On their day the Warriors are one of the best teams in the competition with their adlib style of play. With Sam Tomkins slowly improving every week and Kevin Locke returning into a backline that includes Shaun Johnson and Konrad Hurrell, four pointers may rain on Saturday night for the away team.

Reason to Turn Away:
The Titans are struggling of late and that trend may be set to continue heading into the Origin period with a depleted team. If the rocks or diamonds Warriors show up as the latter, they may put a cricket score on the home side.

Say What:
"We’ve been very close to the top eight the last couple of years and have lost both games to the Warriors, so you could say they have cost us big time." – Titans coach John Cartwright on seeking revenge this weekend.

Final Word:
The Titans team sheet looks nothing like the one that started the season in a blaze of glory. The young Warriors outfit should be hungry for two points after a close loss to the table-topping Bulldogs last week. Sorry Gold Coast fans, but it could get ugly this week. Warriors by 16.

Tab.co.nz Odds:
Titans $2.80
Warriors $1.40

[DIEHARD]

Lillyman focused after Origin snub

After being snubbed by Queensland selectors ahead of the opening game of the 2014 State of Origin series, Warriors prop Jacob Lillyman is feeling disappointed but determined.

In arguably career-best form, Lillyman had been touted as a potential replacement for Sam Thaiday, who was forced to withdraw from selection due to injury.

Instead the Maroons picked a bench without a recognised front-rower in sight, opting for utility Daly Cherry-Evans and three back-rowers in Ben Te'o, Aidan Guerra and Josh Papalii.

"Obviously there is disappointment – it is always such an honour to pull on that Maroon jersey," Lillyman said.

"I knew given my form that I was probably thereabouts and might have been talked about at the selection table, but they have shown in the past that loyalty is a big thing.

"I was hopeful that I might get a spot, but it wasn't to be and I am sure the guys they have will do the job.

"In saying that it is a long series and a lot can happen, as long as I am performing at club level then you never know.

"If there is an opportunity there I will grab it with both hands."

Warriors coach Andrew McFadden, who singled Lillyman out as the club's best player so far this season, was equally dejected when he heard the man they call 'Bull' had missed out.

"It is very disappointing for Jacob, he has been outstanding for us all year, probably our standout to be honest," McFadden said.

"His numbers on the weekend [against the Bulldogs] were huge, and I am really disappointed he didn't get selected.

"But it is a good thing for us and there are two other games he can push for, so I am still hopeful he will get another crack at Origin level."

After the first 10 rounds of the NRL season, Lillyman is the only Warriors player to have run for over 100 metres in every game, with an average of 140.

That number dwarfs his 2013 average of 97 metres per game, while his work rate on the other side of the ball has improved too, including a 35-tackle haul in last week's 16-12 loss to the Bulldogs.

Lillyman's NRL Fantasy prospects have risen significantly as well. With an average round score of 36.9, his value has increased by $18,858 since the start of the season.

The 30-year-old former Cowboy says an extended pre-season campaign and maturing of the mind is behind his positive start to the year.

"At the time it was pretty sad coming back on the 28th of October [for pre-season training], but it meant that we had a lot of time to work on things and get the body up to really good strength and fitness levels," he said.

"This year a big goal for me was to be really consistent. I think I have achieved that so far, but there is still a long way to go."

With Sam Rapira still battling injury, and Sione Lousi limping off the park with a knee injury last week, the depleted Warriors front-row face a Gold Coast side also missing a key big-bopper in Nate Myles, who is in camp with the Maroons.

http://www.nrl.com/

[Titanic]

Hurrell is a defence liability and Mead will show that ... this I am not woried about but I am certainly worried about Zillman ... WTF are our coaches thinking? Henry must be just bending over and begging to receive! In fact let's give his his title ... Neil Ben Dover .. FFS.