King exit threatens a Titans hangover
THE pain of Neil Henry’s exit could extend into 2018, with former Titans football manager Scott Sattler predicting a tough time at the recruiting table until a replacement is found.
Gold Coast still have seven full-time spots available in next season’s top 30 and are known to be on the hunt to recruit outside backs.
Sattler said the absence of a head coach following Henry’s axing on Monday will be a stumbling block in the bid to lure established NRL talent.
“Players will be apprehensive about playing at a club where they don’t know who the coach is because there are some coaches where their style just doesn’t fit some players and vice versa,” he said.
“So there will be a bit of a holding pattern.
“If you’re a young player who has been playing at a club where you’re in and out of first grade and coming off the bench and have a lot of potential, a bit like Jai Arrow, it really doesn’t bother you who the coach is. You just go and play because you just want an opportunity to start.
“If you have played 120 to 150 games, you start worrying about who the coach is because that is going to be the last three or four years of your career.”
That logic may sound alarm bells for the Titans however, given they are under pressure to extend gun halfback Ash Taylor’s stay on the Gold Coast beyond the 2018 season.
Despite Sattler’s concerns, Titans powerbrokers insist Henry’s axing will have little effect on efforts to assemble a premiership-challenging team.
Without a head coach – who Titans boss Graham Annesley revealed may not be appointed
until closer to November – chief operating officer Tony Mestrov will lead player talks including Taylor.
The Bulletin understands decisions will this week be made on the futures of off-contract players including Tyrone Roberts, William Zillman, Nate Peteru, Ryan Simpkins, Pat Politoni, Ben Nakubuwai and Jamal Fogarty.
Chris McQueen (Wests Tigers) and Leivaha Pulu (New Zealand) will not return next season while Eddy Pettybourne will be added to the released list alongside Chris Grevsmuhl and Daniel Vidot.
After spending the season with struggling Queensland Cup side Tweed, prop Nakubuwai had been considered a long shot to be re-signed.
However, his promising Eels debut last week brought him back into calculations in what could be a glimmer of hope for the Fiji international.
Gold Coast will count on boom rookies such as Max King, Morgan Boyle, Karl Lawton and Phillip Sami improving under the incoming coach, with vital experience now under their belts.
The finalisation of the salary cap figure is set to help the Titans when other clubs will likely be forced to shed players.