Boss fires back over board jibe

TITANS boss Graham Annesley has come out swinging in defence of the Gold Coast NRL club’s board amid suggestions they lack football experience.

Respected former dual international and inaugural Titan Mat Rogers has led a chorus of claims that the club should overhaul their administration after yet another bruising saga.

“I feel the current toxic situation the Titans find themselves in is due to the club having limited rugby league DNA across their administration and board,” Rogers was quoted earlier this month.

Gold Coast’s handling of the circumstances that led to Neil Henry’s axing raised the eyebrows of many in rugby league but Annesley yesterday rubbished Rogers’ comments.

“Mat is quite wrong with that assessment,” he said.

“Darryl Kelly has been involved in league all of his life. Geoff Jones has been an assistant coach at the Brumbies – admittedly a different code but he has been around rugby league most of his life and rugby union most of his life.

“Lynne Anderson has got a pedigree that goes back decades with her father Peter Moore, who was a CEO at the Bulldogs and she was the marketing director at the Bulldogs.

“And then there is me of course, I have been involved in the game all my life.

“To suggest that there is no football knowledge on the board is completely wrong.”

On the coaching front, a tight-lipped Annesley did reveal September 30 as the preferred deadline for a coach.

“Things can intervene but if at all possible we’d like to have it wrapped up by the end of September for sure,” he said.