BEWARE THE WOLF
Ash tips Roberts to bite back
WATCH out Penrith – Tyrone Roberts is ready to hit his straps.
That’s the message from Gold Coast halfback Ash Taylor, who says his Titans halves partner has come back a better player and leader from his stint with the Warrington Wolves in England.
Roberts inked a three-year deal with Warrington Wolves in 2017 and though he returned after just one season, Taylor said the Super League stint had worked wonders for his teammate’s game.
“He’s gained a lot of confidence overseas and he’s fallen into that leadership role where I’ve been the past few years,” Taylor said ahead of the Titans’ clash with the Panthers at Cbus Super Stadium tomorrow night.
“Him being there, he can really take over the role and free me up a bit so I can play my game and pick the moments I want to inject myself into the game.”
The pair were denied a Round 1 reunion when Taylor (quad) was ruled out pre-game before Roberts went down in the 17th minute but their chemistry in Auckland last Friday was undeniable, despite the Titans falling to 0-4 for the season with their 26-10 loss to the Warriors.
Roberts and Taylor face a litmus test against Penrith’s NSW Origin pair Nathan Cleary and James Maloney.
MAROONS great Billy Moore says the Titans should move young gun AJ Brimson to fullback to improve their tryline attack.
Fox Sports Lab figures reveal Brimson is yet to notch up a linebreak and has just one tackle bust after shifting between a utility sub and halfback during the opening four rounds of 2019.
The 20-year-old averaged 3.75 tackle busts and one linebreak a game in his four-match stint at fullback last year.
Gold Coast’s winless start to the season, in which they have averaged just nine points a game, has prompted calls to change their attacking depth.
Moore told the panel on Fox Sport’s Queenslanders Only that Brimson should be the starting fullback.
“For me, Michael Gordon has been a great servant and he’s a great older head to have around the club for stability,” he said.
“But Brimson, if he’s recovered from his shoulder surgery, he has to start.
“You think about last year and he was outstanding and I’d be saying he’s a starting fullback.
“Obviously, he can float around the back there and be a second five-eighth. That’s their future. (The Titans’) problem hasn’t been effort.
“Their confidence 30m out (from the tryline), they just seem to hit a bit of a wall and they start playing a bit too sideways.”
Brimson also scored four tries in four games when he replaced the injured Gordon at the back end of last season.
The young gun said he was happy to play wherever coach Garth Brennan wanted.
“It’s been a bit all over the shop but I’m not complaining,” he said of his positional changes early in the season.
“I was grateful to start in the halves and I was happy to be picked in the 17 against the Warriors.
“I just have to bring a lot of energy to the team.”
Another player looking to do the same in the Titans’ clash with Penrith tomorrow night is giant Panthers forward Viliame Kikau.
The Fijian powerhouse emerged as one of the game’s most destructive forwards with a breakout season last year that included 104 tackle breaks and 1357 post-contact metres.
New coach Ivan Cleary has demanded the 24-yearold own his left edge, which has been revamped with Nathan Cleary and Dean Whare switching flanks from the right side.
“I was just a bit quiet on the edge (last year) and I wasn’t really communicating well with the halves on my edge,” Nikau said.
“This year he told me to take some ownership and get that communication.”