HOLBROOK’S BIG WISH
Incoming Titans coach explains why he had to take the role
JUSTIN Holbrook admits taking the Titans job was something he “needed to do” as the NRL’s worst-kept secret was finally confirmed last night.
Holbrook’s English club St Helens broke the three-day wait for confirmation by trumpeting the exit of the mentor who has guided them to the top of the Super League.
The 43-year-old’s next challenge will be recalibrating a Gold Coast club which has played finals just once in nine years. Holbrook has accepted a two-year deal with the Titans.
“It has been an extremely tough decision to leave such a great club in St Helens,” he said.
“(Chairman) Eamonn McManus, (CEO) Mike Rush and the board wanted me to stay and did everything they could, which I greatly appreciated, but an opportunity to return home to the NRL is what I feel I need to do.
“It is very difficult as the only time I would get an opportunity like that is when we are winning and doing well as a club, which makes the decision even harder for me.”
The former Sydney Roosters assistant said “the ingredients for a truly great club already exist at the Titans”.
“I am looking forward to moving to the Gold Coast to play my part in turning that vision into a reality,” he said.
“The Titans are a very strong club backed by a strong rugby league community, with a fantastic junior nursery that feeds an exceptional development and pathway system.”
Titans executive chairman Dennis Watt said the club delayed the announcement so Holbrook could personally deliver the news to his St Helens players.
“I think everyone in rugby league would be aware of the tremendous success that Justin has enjoyed in Super League,” Watt said.
“Justin is very highly regarded, and it is a tremendous vote of confidence in the future of the Titans and the work that is already being done at the club that he has chosen the Gold Coast to begin his NRL career.
“The last two coaches to come back to the NRL after coaching in Super League were Michael Maguire and Trent Robinson, and both won premierships on their return to Australia. We would love to see Justin continue that tradition.”
St Helens boss McManus stressed his faith in Holbrook.
“We did everything practical to persuade him to stay but we must respect his decision to join the Gold Coast Titans and to return to Australia with his young family,” he said.
Titans forward Jarrod Wallace yesterday admitted ahead of Sunday’s clash with the Roosters that the players must perform or perish.
GOLD Coast’s decision to appoint his former NRL teammate Justin Holbrook as coach is a risk for both parties, according to Scott Sattler.
The former Titans football manager played alongside Holbrook at Penrith in 2001 and while he’s happy for the 43-year-old, he believes there’s a lot of unknowns about the appointment.
Holbrook has only held assistant coaching roles in the NRL but has enjoyed good success at the helm of English Super League team St Helens since joining them in 2017.
Sattler says despite that encouraging record, the Titans are taking a plunge into the unknown with a coach unproved at NRL level.
“I’m not saying it disrespectfully to Justin Holbrook because it’s a risk for him as well,” Sattler said.
“For Justin it’s a risk as well because he’s going to a club that’s got a lot of scar tissue at the moment.
“They’re trying to rebuild and going and coaching the Gold Coast Titans could be great for your career, it could hinder your career.
“On both fronts, gee, it’s a risk but I think it’s a risk that could have a really happy ending.”
Sattler said the first thing Holbrook and the club needed to do was shake up the playing group.
Several recruits such as Bryce Cartwright, Shannon Boyd, Tyrone Peachey and Leilani Latu arrived on big money but have failed to live up to those price tags.
Million-dollar man Ash Taylor still has two more seasons to run on his lucrative deal as well but hasn’t played for the Titans since early June as he battles personal issues.
“They’ve got to be willing to free some players up that haven’t hit the targets they’ve anticipated with the money they’re being paid,” Sattler said.
“They’ve got to be brutal in their approach and go and sign a couple of seasoned veterans who can really change the fabric of the club.”