Coach calls on No. 7 to take bite out of Cherry-evans
TITANS coach Justin Holbrook has urged young halfback Toby Sexton to come out of his shell to face the man who could have been wearing his Gold Coast No. 7 jersey – Manly star Daly Cherry-evans.
Sexton will make his 10th NRL appearance on Saturday at 4 Pines Park when the Titans face the red-hot Sea Eagles, who are chasing a fourth straight win.
In a parallel universe, it could have been Cherry-evans starting at halfback for the Titans if the Maroons and Kangaroos star had not reneged on a $5m contract with the Gold Coast in 2015 to remain a one-club legend with Manly.
A 266-game NRL ace like Cherry-evans is exactly the type of mentor Sexton needs in the infancy of his first-grade career.
After being handed the Gold Coast’s playmaking duties, which saw seasoned halfback Jamal Fogarty released to Canberra, Sexton has had an up and down start to 2022.
While the Australian Schoolboys sensation is undoubtedly talented, he has floated in and out of games and struggled to assert his dominance, but Holbrook is showing faith in 21-yearold Sexton.
“I’m happy with Toby,” Holbrook said.
“He started really well but he’s maybe not playing as much (footy) as he’d like now. He’s been a little bit conservative, which we’ve spoken about.
“All in all he is controlling the games really well for us. For us to be in the mix in every game is a good indication of Toby doing really well for us at seven.
“He will get better all the time …”
On the other side of the field on Saturday will be CherryEvans, who is arguably playing as well as he ever has at age 33, and in his 12th NRL season.
Holbrook admitted the Titans would struggle to shut down Manly’s chief.
“He has dictated games himself for a number of years now …” he said.
“He is playing fantastic so we’ve got to do a good job on him.”