Round 8: TITANS vs PANTHERS (2022)

[Boonarga]

If Sexton had some pace he'd be fine. The kid needs to invest some dollars in a specialist sprint coach. He's never going to be fast, but he can be faster.

[SCoast Titan]

In that second half our decisions and shape and both end of the field just didn’t make sense. We got gifted like 6 chances in their 20 and were too predictable with our attacking shape and one out runs. Then coming out of our own end we shifted to the right and Herbert and Thompson both had to play one in cause Proctor was out on the wing which closed shut any attacking ball movement. We need to go back to basics with our attack and get some structure because the throw it to every player in the team, flick passes and the miracle kick to the winger just doesn’t work.

[DIEHARD]

Gold Coast Titans v Penrith Panthers
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[JunctionBlock]

Titans missed the memo that this is upset round.

[DIEHARD]

It certainly has been a round where our lower ladder rivals have got a leg up. And even Wests Tigers and the Dragons seem a threat for competition points. Roosters got ambushed by the Bulldogs so are probably going to be on high alert when they face us next weekend.

[DIEHARD]

Not Titan related but great to see this after the game by Nathan. Having a close friend who uses a wheelchair and who was a massive Rugby League fan, I can have some idea at what it means to them. He also was given Nathan's game jersey. That's a fan for life.

I know some fans or a friend called out to Nathan due to the fact that the wheel chair areas are several rows back and they are often unable to interact with the players along with everyone else.

[DIEHARD]

Round 8 stat attack: Maroons make impact
https://www.titans.com.au/news/2022/...s-make-impact/

Billy Slater would've been one happy man watching Friday's clash between the Gold Coast Titans and Penrith Panthers.

With Origin just over a month away, a number of Queensland stars put their best foot forward against several New South Wales linchpins, including Blues halves Jarome Luai and Nathan Cleary and classy ball-playing lock Isaah Yeo.

Dominating the stats was captain courageous Tino Fa'asuamaleaui, punching out 71 minutes and topping the tackling count with 40 efforts, but another middle third hoping to attract the attention of Maroons selectors was Moe Fotuaika.

With Christian Welch set to miss this year's series due to injury, a starting prop jersey is up for grabs - something the 22-year-old will be eyeing off in what is hoped to be his third straight year on the big stage.

It was a courageous effort in his 57 minutes on field, making 144 metres - 61 of those post-contact, and an incredible 35 tackles at a near-perfect 97 percent efficiency.

Another player on the champion fullback's radar is Beau Fermor, who was judged the Macca's man of the match for his commendable effort against the defending premiers, hoping to crack into the Origin arena after finishing 2021 in outstanding form before beginning the new year the same way he finished.

Here are the Titans' top performers for Round 8 in some key stats categories:

Most tackles

1 Tino Fa'asuamaleaui 40
2 Erin Clark 36
3 Beau Fermor 35
4 Moeaki Fotuaika 32
5 Isaac Liu 30

Metres gained

1 Greg Marzhew 195
2 Tino Fa'asuamaleaui 163
3 AJ Brimson 146
4 Moeaki Fotuaika 144
5 Patrick Herbert 138

Post-contact metres

1 Greg Marzhew 84
2 Moeaki Fotuaika 61
3 Tino Fa'asuamaleaui 58
4 Brian Kelly 50
5 Patrick Herbert / Isaac Liu 43

Tackle breaks

1 Greg Marzhew 12
2 Brian Kelly 9
3 Tino Fa'asuamaleaui 7
4 Corey Thompson 4
5 AJ Brimson / Moeaki Fotuaika 3

Fantasy points

1 Tino Fa'asuamaleaui 60
2 Greg Marzhew 58
3 Moeaki Fotuaika 48
4 Erin Clark 45
5 Beau Fermor 44