Q&A: Gold Coast coach Justin Holbrook embracing the expectations on the Titans in 2021

He’s one of the highest paid players in the league and he’s coming off-contract – does Ash Taylor have a future at the Titans? Read Justin Holbrook’s Q&A.

Justin Holbrook says the Titans are heading in the right direction. Picture: Getty Images

The Gold Coast Titans were the NRL’s most improved club of 2020.

The Titans were at rock bottom after collecting the wooden spoon in 2019 and the sacking of coach Garth Brennan.

They signed Super League premiership winning coach Justin Holbrook from St Helens to take the reins and had a slow start to the season before finishing with a bang to end the year in ninth spot on the ladder, narrowly missing a finals berth.

Holbrook tells TRAVIS MEYN about what 2021 holds for the Titans, who will start the season as NRL finals contenders following the signings of David Fifita from the Broncos and Storm giant Tino Fa’asuamaleaui.

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Gold Coast’s big-money recruit David Fifita at Titans pre-season training. Picture: Nigel Hallett

The Titans made some huge improvements following a disastrous 2019. When you sat down and reviewed 2020, what did you learn?

The obvious one was how well we finished the season. That was really important for us. It doesn’t guarantee anything for next year but it gives you a bit more confidence as staff and players that what we did was working. That’s always good. We worked hard during the year and found a good place at the back end, that gives you confidence. We’re looking forward to next year.

You’re heading into your second season as an NRL coach. Are you feeling more comfortable after the finish to 2020?

I’m definitely more comfortable in the sense I’ve got the same coaching staff and while there’s some new players coming in, around two thirds of the squad know what we want from them. I don’t have to tell the staff and players the same things. The longer you are somewhere the more confident you feel. As a club we’re in a much better spot.

With the way we finished the season, new signings we’ve got and a consistent coaching staff is a big help. I’m feeling a lot better, but it doesn’t make it any easier. We’ve got to work harder.

You’ve got some big name recruits at the club in David Fifita (Broncos) and Tino Fa’asuamaleaui (Storm) along with Herman Ese’ese (Knights), Patrick Herbert (Warriors) and Sam McIntyre (Tigers). Are you looking forward to having some new faces in the squad?

Yeah, definitely. We’ve got some really key players coming which is exciting for the coaching staff and players. We’ve got quality guys joining the squad.

Fifita has signed a huge contract but is coming off a poor season at the Broncos and ankle surgery late in the year, how is he tracking?

He was going to try and push to play State of Origin (last November) but that would have been unrealistic. It’s good he hasn’t had that pressure. He can take more time to get it completely right.

Tino Fa’asuamaleaui had a sensational year, winning the NRL premiership with Melbourne and then debuting for Queensland. You must be excited to get him into the club.

He has had a great season. He has had a long season but a really successful one. He will need a good break but I am excited, everyone at the club is. What he is going to bring will be great. I can’t wait.

Ash Taylor is out of contract this year. Picture: Getty Images

After a tough 2019, Ash Taylor made some big improvements as the season went on. What do you want to see from him next year?

More of the same. He played fantastic for us at the back end of the year and he wasn’t 100 per cent. He has had wrist and hip surgery. He played through pain. I was really happy with how he played and fit in with the team.

Early on he was guilty of trying to be the one that creates everything. Once he took that expectation off himself we saw him play fantastic. I’m expecting more of that, nothing else. He just has to do his job and be consistent with it.

Taylor is coming off-contract and is one of your highest paid players. Does he have a future on the Gold Coast?

I do (see a future for him). The way he played this year was great. He only got better as the year went on. There is no reason to suggest otherwise. He played with consistency and that’s what I want from him. He was great at training. I want him to continue like that.

You’ve said goodbye to some experienced players this year in the likes of Ryan James (Canberra), Jai Arrow (South Sydney) and Nathan Peats (unknown). Do you feel like your squad is too young and lacking experience or are the emerging players ready to take the next step?

I don’t see it as an issue. I understand what you’re saying. The teams at the top like Melbourne and the Roosters are in a different category, they’ve played in a lot of grand finals. We’ve got talent coming through. I’m not disagreeing with you but I’m OK with it. We can’t jump too many steps.

We had guys like Jamal Fogarty bring a lot of maturity which was key for us. We’ve still got Kevin Proctor, Mitch Rein, they’ve played for a long time. We’ve still got enough of that for mine. Then we’ve got the really good youth of AJ Brimson, Moe Fotuaika, Tino, David, those guys. I understand what you’re saying, but I’m OK with that.

Ryan James, Nathan Peats and Jai Arrow have all left the Titans. Picture: AAP Image/Dave Hunt

We saw some big improvements in the way the Titans played as the year wore on and you won your last five games. What specific parts of your game do you want to work on now?

At the back end of the year we were clear about what we wanted to do with the ball. When you’re in that frame of mind, you can pay more attention to nullifying the opposition’s strengths. That was the key for us. We did a good job on the opposition and really enjoyed playing with the ball. We were really clear and playing for each other.

The boys were really enjoying playing footy. Every team finished in a tough environment with the COVID stuff but we were really flourishing coming to training and playing on the weekend. As the season went on, what changed was the guys were really looking forward to playing.

That was the most pleasing thing for me as a coach. Seeing the guys improve technically but also really wanting to do well for our club and create some hype around the Gold Coast was great for us.

After collecting the wooden spoon in 2019, there wasn’t much expectation on the Titans in 2020. That will be different now with some big signings and strong form. How do you think the club will cope with that expectation and pressure to play finals?

It’s a good thing. It’s good to have that. You want to have expectations. Last year we weren’t given many expectations and we also didn’t have much credibility, which I didn’t like. You want the rest of the competition and people in our game to have expectations of us. It gives us credibility.

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