The Gold Coast Titans have shown flashes of, if not brilliance, at least a high level of competence, but they have also had their lustre dulled by a lack of consistency when it comes to winning games that should come easily.
Gold Coast lost to the Parramatta Eels at ANZ Stadium and it is hard to ascribe that loss to the Eels having home ground.
Just the week prior, they put the hurt to the New Zealand Warriors, but Coach Garth Brennan has not been able to supply a solution to the enigma that is the Gold Coast Titans.
“I think if we were a racehorse there would be a stewards’ inquiry compared to last week’s performance,” Brennan said. “That’s the most disappointing thing about it.The whole night (the Eels) ran harder, tackled harder, and wanted it more, and until our guys the NRL is a tough game and you have to turn up every week we’re going to have that inconsistency in our game.The damage was done in that first half with our attitude right from the start.”
The Titans cannot live in the past, but even skipper Ryan James seemed focused on the win over the Warriors, but he stood up and placed the blame on himself and the team for the loss to the de facto Telstra 2018 NRL Premiership competition spooners.
“It was the way we started, like myself letting Tim Mannah run over me for that first try, that’s probably the softest try I’ve ever been a part of,” James said.“It was disappointing to do that after what we did last week … we played well, competed well and stuck to the game plan, and this week we couldn’t.Nothing fell into place.”
Perhaps not, but by falling to the weakest team in the competition, the Titans are putting the finishing touches on a season of futility, where the only real consistency has been an ability to lose at home and on the road.
