2024 Season General Discussion Thread

[willhelm]

Ugh, gross, probably the worst one we've had, looks nasty.

God I miss Aquis.

That's pretty rude mate. I think she's beautiful.

[MaroonTitan]

Mitchell, Des, Fermor and JC

Now that we're sponsored by the Bunker, nothing will hold us back!

[psmitty]

Des's first press conference.

https://www.titans.com.au/news/2023/..._source=Eloqua

[Upthetits]

All pretty reasonable questions then the fox reporter gets the mic and starts trying to go for drama lol

[Cowabunga]

We haven't even got to pre season and Des is going at the refs like we all asked.

I love that man. Hilarious he's in the same complex as Dimma.

[NZFan]

Ok but who's the one we actually wanna know about

Mate stop being a pig. It’s a footy forum. Nobody wants to read that sort of stuff on here.

[willhelm]

Mate stop being a pig. It’s a footy forum. Nobody wants to read that sort of stuff on here.

Game’s gone soft. I bet you don’t even want to bring back the biff.

[Titanic]

Things are looking up, humor has finally returned to the Forum (@MT's bunker reference) ya bunch of woosies ... bring back the biff and all sorts of other unmentionables. The rudest thing about that pic is that the woman didn't even rate a mention, that's something that should have woken you all up (see what I did there Willy). I will solve it though, Lottery Office's CEO Jaclyn Wood.

On topic, some could say that looking at that jersey we finally have grown a set or two, onya Dessie.

On the presser: (1) one of Des's answer to changes in the game over three decades was the increased size of the players, interesting considering our lack of size; (2) the predominance of female reporters and the high quality of their questions (except Hot Tomato); (3) Badel is definitely a tool and Des didn't miss him; (4) classic Des and his ability to manage the media.

[willhelm]

Things are looking up, humor has finally returned to the Forum (@MT's bunker reference) ya bunch of woosies ... bring back the biff and all sorts of other unmentionables. The rudest thing about that pic is that the woman didn't even rate a mention, that's something that should have woken you all up (see what I did there Willy). I will solve it though, Lottery Office's CEO Jaclyn Wood.

On topic, some could say that looking at that jersey we finally have grown a set or two, onya Dessie.

On the presser: (1) one of Des's answer to changes in the game over three decades was the increased size of the players, interesting considering our lack of size; (2) the predominance of female reporters and the high quality of their questions (except Hot Tomato); (3) Badel is definitely a tool and Des didn't miss him; (4) classic Des and his ability to manage the media.

Always appreciate your posts mate. I was just thinking this thread needed more T.

[Hail Sezer]

Day one of pre-season today.

Train and trialists confirmed:

https://www.titans.com.au/news/2023/...itans-in-2024/

The Gold Coast's 2024 pre-season begins on Monday with younger members of the squad reporting for duty at Parkwood under the guise of new coach Des Hasler.

Young guns Jayden Campbell, Tom Weaver, Iszac Fa'asuamaleaui and Jojo Fifita will be among the top 30 players who return, joining the newly-announced development players and a range of players from the club's Future Titans and affiliate Hostplus Cup systems.

See below for the list of train-and-trial players who will join the club throughout the pre-season to hone in on their skills.

Vaka Sikahele (hooker/lock)
Continuing to ply his trade with another train-and-trial opportunity, the former New Zealand Schoolboys hooker returns to Titans HQ after a strong season in the Hostplus Cup, helping Burleigh to the grand final with 23 appearances off the bench as the interchange hooker.

The 21-year-old got his opportunity in the trials earlier this year, scoring a try against the Broncos and will hope to continue learning under the likes of Sam Verrills and Chris Randall in his third pre-season opportunity.

Kaleb Ngamanu (Wing/Ctr)
Earning another chance to be part of a Gold Coast pre-season, Ngamanu gets his chance to impress Hasler and the coaching staff with his upcoming stint at Parkwood.

The Tweed Seagulls outside back played 19 games in the Hostplus Cup in 2023, scoring 18 tries to be the club's leading scorer and finish in the competition's top five for four-pointers this season.

Joseph Shannon (Middle)
Getting his first crack at a full-time train-and-trial opportunity, the Future Titans middle forward from Coombabah State High School will lean on the chance to learn from the likes of Tino Fa'asuamaleaui, Moeaki Fotuaika and Isaac Liu in his summer session.

The experience with the NRL side will hope to help deliver on his goal to debut in the Hostplus Cup after previously playing for Burleigh in the Hastings Deering Colts.

Sam Stephenson (Centre)
Having plenty of football DNA already in his veins being the son of Manly and Cronulla star Paul Stephenson, Sam has already built an impressive rugby league CV at only age 17.

Attending Palm Beach Currumbin, the strike outside back made the Queensland Schoolboys team in 2023 and has been a dominant force for the Future Titans since being identified by the Gold Coast's pathways system from an early age.

Alex Leapai (Middle)
The son of Alex Leapai snr, Leapai jnr is a recent acquisition for the Titans having previously been part of the Roosters' development system.

The Mabel Park State High School product is an extremely talented middle forward who helped his school to a strong Langer Cup showing in 2023, now hoping to continue growing under Hasler's helm at Parkwood this pre-season.

Tom Steadman (Half)
A new acquisition for Tweed next season, switching from Burleigh after helping steer them to the grand final in 2023, the 46-game Hostplus Cup playmaker is hoping to continue his rise to the top after a strong first season on the Coast.

The Central Coast-born talent began his career in Cairns at the Northern Pride before making the move to Titans territory, which has allowed him to pick up a train-and-trial opportunity after just one season down south.

Luke Burton (Middle)
The 24-year-old middle forward was one of Tweed's best in 2023, earning himself a starting jersey midway through the season across his 17 Hostplus Cup appearances.

Burton will use his time at Parkwood to continue to finesse his game, hoping to put himself in the shop window for further NRL opportunites.

Kyle Coghill (Middle)
A new signing for the Ipswich Jets in 2024 to help bolster their playmaking stocks, Coghill will join the Titans' summer with 22 games of Hostplus Cup games under his belt, most recently with the Norths Devils.

The proud Nunukul and Goenpul man who hails from North Stradbroke Island made 17 appearances in the 2023 Cup season, finishing with nine try assists and proved to have an elusive running game with 27 tackle breaks across the year.

Jordan Penquitt (Middle)
Bolstering the Jets' forward pack in 2024, Penquitt joins Ipswich from the Brisbane Tigers in which saw him play 17 games in the Hastings Deering Colts competition, helping them to the big dance against Townsville.

Offering plenty of go forward up front, the Ipswich Grammar alumni is looking forward to another opportunity at Parkwood after joining the ranks for a summer at the end of 2021.

Jack Garrod (Middle)
Getting a NRL pre-season with the Titans after previously being part of Penrith's Jersey Flegg system, Garrod is a talented middle forward who is looking forward to his chance to learn under experienced head coach Des Hasler.

He is set to relish his opportunity to learn from fellow Titans forward Moeaki Fotuaika, Tino Fa'asuamaleaui and Isaac Liu during his time with the Titans.

- - - Updated - - -

Vaka Sikahele, Jo Shannon, Kaleb Ngamanu, Alex Leapai, Sam Stephenson, Zane Harrison are all products of our JTS system and at various ages/stages of their development.

Notably both Stephenson and Harrison still have another year of high school in 2024.

A quick side note on Vaka - he played more lock than 9 this year. I think that's where his future is.

[NZFan]

Do you think that was because he was stuck behind Politoni HZ? He plays a similar game to Erin Clarke but I thought his passing was a lot better in the limited time I saw him play.

[Hail Sezer]

Do you think that was because he was stuck behind Politoni HZ? He plays a similar game to Erin Clarke but I thought his passing was a lot better in the limited time I saw him play.

Yeah mate that would've been part of it, although they did opt for Coster to play 9 over Vaka at times as well.

Vaka's strength is his running game, and intensity on D. He can really whack above his weight class. His ruck ID and work with the ball generally needs a bit of work to be a full-time 9 IMO and I think he gets more opportunities to show his strengths at 13. No idea if that's what the coaches are also thinking though.

Des will be a fan of his game I reckon.

[Blade07]

Any pictures of the training gear yet?

[Hail Sezer]

Any pictures of the training gear yet?

Think they just had meetings & admin today

Field tomorrow

Edit: check Titans insta there's few photos of it

[Dobes]

Think they just had meetings & admin today

Field tomorrow

Edit: check Titans insta there's few photos of it

It's all on the Titans store website, the entire collection by the looks of it

Gotta say, 2023 much better