NRL 2021: Titans star David Fifita fired up for Broncos showdown
David Fifita is adamant the pressure of being one of the NRL’s highest-paid players won’t get to him as he prepares to cut loose against his former club on Friday night.
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David Fifita says he has ignored the pressure of being Gold Coast’s $1.2 million man as Titans coach Justin Holbrook gets set to persist with a shock positional switch for his game-breaking forward.
Fifita will be deployed on the unfamiliar left edge again when the Titans host Brisbane in Friday night’s derby at Cbus Super Stadium.
Fifita spent most of the pre-season training in his favoured right back-row berth, only for Holbrook to use him on the left in last weekend’s Round 1 loss to New Zealand.
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Fifita, 21, came up against diminutive Warriors playmaker Kodi Nikorima in that game but failed to exploit the size difference after being hospitalised in the lead-up to the game with an infected boil.
All eyes will be on how Fifita performs against his former club after quitting the Broncos to join the Titans on a mega $3.5 million three-year deal.
Fifita said he wasn’t concerned about the pressure that comes with being one of the NRL’s highest-paid players and he was ready to deliver for the Titans.
“The pressure is always there, but I block everything out and want to play football because that’s what I know I can do,” he told Fox League.
“I just love the game and want to make my family happy and proud. I want to do my best for them and my teammates at the end of the day.
“I know the expectations that are on myself. I’ve just got to do what I do and not worry about what people say. I know what I’m capable of doing.”
Fifita played on the right in Gold Coast’s pre-season trial against New Zealand, but switched sides with co-captain Kevin Proctor in Round 1. He trained on the left in Thursday morning’s captain’s run, which would put him up against Broncos five-eighth Anthony Milford.
Broncos prop Tevita Pangai Jr said Brisbane would have to do their best to protect Milford and halfback Brodie Croft from Fifita.
“Dave is on the edge so he will be running at our halves, we have to present one line,” he said. “He loves his drops plays coming back on the inside so we have to be ready for that. He is a strong ball carrier so it’s important we quieten him down.
“It was really hard to see him leave. I was disappointed he left, we usually don’t lose players like Dave but last year we were disconnected with the community, disconnected as a whole, but we are trying to make it a family club again and trying to get that winning culture back.
“Hopefully players can stay here for less (money) like they did in the old days.”
Broncos captain Alex Glenn said Fifita would be a menace for the Titans if he starts firing.
“Dave can be huge for them,” he said. “With the price they have paid, they can see the potential he has and what he can do to make the Titans great.
“I’m a Gold Coast junior and rugby league is such a huge sport in the region. It would be good to see the Titans as a force in the game, but hopefully we get the win this week.”
WALTERS PUTS HEAT ON FIFITA
Broncos coach Kevin Walters has turned up the heat on David Fifita after the Titans backed their $1.2 million man to fire against his former club.
Fifita will make his first appearance against the Broncos in Friday night’s derby at Cbus Super Stadium on the Gold Coast.
The Queensland Origin star shocked the Broncos last year when he quit the club to take up a $3.5 million three-year deal with the Titans.
Fifita’s Titans debut in last week’s loss to New Zealand was lacklustre after he battled an infected boil in his ankle in the lead-up to the game.
Now one of the highest-paid players in the NRL, Fifita’s performances will be heavily scrutinised and his form will go a long way to deciding how the Titans fare in 2021.
Walters has long believed $1 million-a-season players must deliver weekly and the new Broncos coach did not back down.
“Certainly yes, they have to be able to deliver,” he said. “I don’t think my opinions have changed on that. Dave came up in our video stuff, he is a good young player.
“We’re really focused about us and our role and he is a concern for the Titans, how they want to go with Dave. I don’t think he has a point to prove. He was a player here and now he is at another club.”
Fifita, 21, punched out 70 minutes against the Warriors before being replaced as the Titans suffered a 19-6 loss.
Titans coach Justin Holbrook said he was expecting his star recruit to have an improved performance following a steady week of training and the excitement of facing his old club.
“That’ll happen naturally no matter who plays their old club,” Holbrook said.
“It will be no different. I just want him to play well.
“He has had a normal week which is great for him and our team.
“I felt a bit for Dave and left him out there longer than I had planned. When you’re down 12-nil someone like him can change it.
“If we were up 12-nil he would have come off after 50 minutes. I left him out there a bit long. You want round one to be perfect but those things happen.”
After a pre-season of optimism, the Titans were disappointing in Round 1 but Holbrook isn’t stressing yet, denying they had to beat last year’s wooden spooners Brisbane.
“There’s a bit of hype around us this year and we didn’t play as well as we would have liked in round one,” he said.
“It’s only round two so we’re worried about trying to perform our best to win.
“Regardless of finals footy and where the opposition came last year, it’s our biggest game of the year against our biggest rival.
“We want to win for ourselves, our area and fans. That’s enough motivation without worrying about the end of the year.”
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