NRL 2022 Coaching clipboard sessions: Justin Holbrook on Gold Coast’s tough questions

Titans coach Justin Holbrook has revealed his expectations for David Fifita in 2022 and delivering on Gold Coast’s lofty NRL premiership goals - it’s all in Coach’s Clipboard.

Jayden Campbell. Photo - NRL Photos

Justin Holbrook coached the Gold Coast Titans to their first NRL finals appearance since 2016 this year, in his second season at the club.

The Titans snuck into eighth spot on the ladder with a dramatic last-round win against the Warriors despite boasting a 10-14 record for the season.

But the Titans’ finals joy was shattered in a heartbreaking 25-24 loss to the Roosters in Townsville which saw the Gold Coast eliminated in the first week of the play-offs.

The Titans refused to give up in a seesawing affair against the Roosters and had a chance to snatch victory in the final seconds, only to bomb what was a certain try.

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For Holbrook and the Titans it was a painful end to a rollercoaster season, but the experience will do his team well in years to come as they press for the club’s first NRL title.

After 15 years in the NRL, the Titans have boldly declared they want to win two premierships in the next nine seasons and Holbrook will be entrusted with delivering success to the Gold Coast.

He speaks to TRAVIS MEYN about the pain of 2021 and what’s to come for the Titans next season.

Justin Holbrook directs traffic at training as David Fifita looks on. Picture: Jason O’Brien

TM: How were you after the dramatic finals loss to the Roosters? Did it take you a while to get over?

JH: It did, it was disappointing. The hardest thing is when you watch the next week’s games and we would have loved to have been playing in them. That was very difficult for everyone. We got into the top eight and there was a real excitement around the city. To fall just short and not get through to the second week took a while to get over.

TM: What were you like?

JH: I wasn’t kicking stones but the next week was hard. You would see promotions and previews of the games coming up. They were reminders that we were so close to being part of it. It’s the best part of the year but I wanted it to go away because we weren’t part of it. It was a horrible feeling. It’s all done and dusted now and we’re starting fresh.

TM: What did the Titans learn from the 2021 season?

JH: Lots of things. It was full of everything. We were inconsistent. We had some great highs, big lows and a lot of in-between. We fought all the way to the end which was great. I was really pleased we made the finals. After I calmed down and had time to reflect, the disappointment of not playing went away. We got to the finals and want to get better. We need to be consistent with our performances.

TM: When you make the finals that becomes the benchmark. How do you feel about that?

JH: It’s great, that’s what we want to be seen as. We want to be a finals team. We were good enough to get in there this year. I want to have an easier path – it’d be nice to know before the final game of the season that we are in the finals. We’ve got to be better earlier in the season and keep improving. All in all it was great for our club and city to make finals but we want to get better again.

Mal Meninga and the Titans revealed their lofty premiership expectations. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty

TM: The Titans have boldly declared they want to win two NRL premierships by 2030. What are your thoughts on that?

JH: I think it’s good. A lot of thought went into it and the process was very thorough. It wasn’t just an off-the-cuff line from the CEO or chairman. A lot of thought has gone into it. The easy answer is that if you don’t say anything then no-one asks. But from a whole club point of view I think it’s good to show our vision of where we want to get to. When you expect to get things then you expect to get them and it becomes normal. If you never talk about it then you never strive for it and don’t get there. I’m comfortable with where the club is going. It’s okay that they want to share it publicly. It shows our intentions and commitment to what we want to achieve.

TM: As coach you will be under more pressure to deliver premierships now.

JH: There is pressure on everyone. When you come out and make statements it makes you vulnerable to everybody. To be honest, it probably does put more pressure on me. It’s easy for me to say it doesn’t, but that’s not the truth is it? There is more pressure but I think it’s good because everybody knows what we’re working towards. We’ve made a lot of good improvements right across our staff and players over the last two years and we want to keep getting better. That all goes towards winning a competition.

TM: You signed a couple of big players in David Fifita and Tino Fa’asuamaleaui last year but haven’t been as active in the recruitment market this year. Why is that?

JH: We are relying on the guys from within. We think we’ve got the right players here. What gives me confidence is they’ve all got another year of experience. Guys like Dave, Tino and Moe Fotuaika were all 21 this year, they have still got so much to learn and to grow as a group. We’ve got the same players next year but they’re all one year older, have another pre-season under their belts, more experience and tasted finals. There is a lot of upside there. We didn’t need to be too active. Once you feel you’ve got the right people it’s about investing in them and doing a lot of coaching to get them ready to go. A guy like Isaac Liu (Roosters) is going to be massive for us. He’s such a professional player and does all the little things well in a game. We’ve got some high-end talented players but we need some hard workers that are going to make a lot of tackles and offer a lot to the younger guys.

TM: Your spine players like Toby Sexton, AJ Brimson and Jayden Campbell have great talent but are also very young and inexperienced in their positions. Are you taking a risk on them?

Jayden Campbell burst onto the scene in 2021. Picture: NRL Photos

JH: They will be fine. While we’ve got young guys in key positions we have a really strong forward pack and add Isaac into that as a senior, experienced player. It’s the perfect mix for us. The way Toby Sexton plays is not like a typical young half that chances his arm and makes a lot of high-risk plays. He is more of a mature style organising halfback. I don’t think we need to be worried in that area. He is very good at game management which gives me a lot of confidence. I don’t think it’s a risk, they’ve earnt their opportunities. We’re bringing experience in with Will Smith (Eels) who’s played in some finals. He is the older head that will be pushing them. We’ve got depth in each position and good competition.

TM: Given the inexperience in your spine, why did you release your co-captain Jamal Fogarty to Canberra?

JH: I would have loved him to have stayed.

TM: He could have stayed, he was contracted to the Titans for two more years.

JH: It gets difficult. We had an open and honest conversation. He knew we had high hopes for Toby coming through. While Jamal is young in terms of NRL, he is getting old in terms of his career, and he wanted to definitely play NRL. I completely understood that. I’ve got a lot of time for him. He didn’t want to go back to Q-Cup. I wasn’t sure if he would, I told him I wanted him to fight for his spot. But he had a better opportunity. The Raiders said he was their starting halfback no matter what. It was hard for me as a coach to make him stay. If round one came around and he wasn’t in the side then I would have felt bad because he’s such a nice guy that does everything well. From a selfish point of view I would have rather he stayed. I would have loved for him and Toby to fight it out. But we’ve got really high hopes for Toby which may have made it hard for Jamal to start at halfback. As a coach I would have felt horrible and he hadn’t played NRL in eight rounds. He’s too good a guy to do that to.

TM: With Jamal gone, what are your plans with the captaincy?

JH: I’m not sure yet. We’ve still got KP (Kevin Proctor) here and he is a natural leader but he is coming towards the back end of his career. I’m going to wait until all the players come back and start training. I’ll make a decision after that.

TM: Is Tino a contender?

JH: Definitely. He is still only young and has a lot of improvement left in his game. He will only be 22 next year but he is such a natural leader with his actions. He’s not about him having to think about giving speeches. The way he goes about his life is excellent.

TM: David Fifita ended last season playing off the bench. Does he need to push himself into a starting spot this pre-season?

JH: Yeah, definitely. The last two pre-seasons he’s done, he’s started in rehab. This year he is fully fit and firing. He will have a big pre-season and will benefit from that.