‘IT’S ‘IT’S JUST NOT GOOD ENOUGH’
SUPERSTAR fullback Jarryd Hayne has criticised the Gold Coast Titans’ patchy play, saying it was “not good enough” to propel the club back into the NRL finals. Hayne and his Titans teammates will have to find the answer ... and fast ahead of Friday night’s clash with South Sydney.
TITANS star Jarryd Hayne says playing well in patches is “not good enough” if the Gold Coast are to beat the odds and make the NRL finals.
Despite a strong start, the Titans were poor in their 34-12 loss to New Zealand on Saturday night, a result that makes their job of pushing into the top eight increasingly difficult.
Hayne played strongly in his return to fullback despite having limited opportunity in what was a spluttering attacking effort overall, scoring a try and making 110m from three tackle breaks and a line break.
He, Nathan Peats and possibly Jarrod Wallace will be unavailable for Friday night’s game against Souths in Sydney while on Origin duty. But Hayne was not willing to write his team off despite the fact they are likely to need to win eight of their last 11 games to make the playoffs.
“We just need to find some rhythm,” Hayne said.
“We’ve played good in patches but it’s not good enough. Especially (against the Warriors), we jumped out of the blocks, started well, scored the (first) try and seemed to be going well.
“But we weren’t able to execute and complete our sets which is the issue we’ve got at the moment and we need to be better.”
The Warriors continued their seven-year winning run at Robina and notched their first victory on the road since Round 22 last year – a game against the Titans at Cbus Super Stadium.
Hayne, who finished the match defending at fiveeighth after Kane Elgey was forced from the field with a sternum injury, said it was disappointing the same issues kept plaguing the team.
“We have games where our attack is on fire and our defence is letting us down and then days like (Saturday against the Warriors) where our defence is down and I felt like our attack, we did look dangerous at times,” he said.
“It’s about being consistent and really getting that rhythm together.”
Titans coach Neil Henry had highlighted the Titans’ need to have a better than even share of possession but was left feeling like he was stuck in groundhog day.
His team repeated the same errors that had cost them against Manly and the Cowboys in their previous two games.
And the performance was particularly disappointing on a day that was meant to be a celebration of the club’s first 10 years in the competition.
“It is very disappointing that they can play with a bit more energy than us and it was a big day for us,” he said.
WE’VE PLAYED GOOD IN PATCHES BUT IT’S NOT GOOD ENOUGH ... JARRYD HAYNE