Titans sale in doubt after record loss to Brisbane, Neil Henry’s future on the line

DARRYL Kelly is considering abandoning plans to buy the Titans and Neil Henry’s future is in doubt after the worst fortnight in the club’s history.

GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA — AUGUST 05: Ash Taylor of the titans looks dejected during the round 22 NRL match between the Gold Coast Titans and the Brisbane Broncos at Cbus Super Stadium on August 5, 2017 in Gold Coast, Australia. (Photo by Jason O'Brien/Getty Images)

THE Titans are in turmoil with saviour Darryl Kelly revealing he could abandon plans to buy the club as pressure mounted on coach Neil Henry following the most embarrassing fortnight in the Gold Coast’s history.

The looming sale of the Titans to a privately owned entity has clouded Henry’s future on the back of Saturday’s record 54-0 loss to the Broncos.

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At the crux of Henry’s problems is a growing discontent among some players who are privately casting doubts on whether he is the right coach to lead the club.

And now Kelly is considering whether he should forge ahead with a bid to buy the franchise for a second time following the Broncos and Tigers debacles in recent weeks.

Kelly is considering backing out on his decision to buy the Titans.

Kelly tipped more than $5 million into the Titans when saving the club from extinction in 2013, only to lose it all when the NRL assumed ownership in February 2015.

He has formulated a consortium of locals to launch a bid to buy the club from the NRL in the coming months but admitted the Gold Coast’s horrible performances have made him have second thoughts.

“I am totally disillusioned and questioning whether I should continue,” an emotional Kelly told The Courier-Mail.

“The performance of the players (was most disappointing). There was no pride at all in what they did. That’s disappointing when everyone else is working so hard.

“This side is supposed to be a better side than we had last year and last year’s side had a go. They turned up and had a go.”

Henry guided the Titans to a five-year drought-breaking finals appearance in 2016 and the club was tipped to be a finals contender again this season.

The Titans have collapsed in the last two weeks to sink to 14th on the ladder.

An unprecedented injury toll rocked the Gold Coast’s start to the season, effectively crushing their top-eight aspirations, but it has been the fashion of performances in the past two weeks at home that has put Henry’s future under the microscope.

With their finals hopes on the line, the Titans fell 26-4 to the lowly Wests Tigers before suffering the club’s biggest ever loss in its 11-season history as Brisbane scored 10 tries in 57 minutes.

Qualifying for last year’s finals series triggered an option in Henry’s contract to extend his tenure until the end of 2018.

The NRL would be reluctant to fork out a severance package of up to $400,000 to part ways with Henry, however the Titans will be sold in the coming months to a private entity that would then have control of financial decisions in conjunction with the club’s board.

Dejected chief executive Graham Annesley admitted he was embarrassed by the team’s performance in the Broncos game but said the club would not make knee-jerk reactions.

“We competed for most of the first half, but what happened in the second half was embarrassing and humiliating,” he said.

The 54-0 loss was the worst in the club’s history.

“I feel for our members, corporate partners and fans who invest financially and emotionally in our club. They deserve much better and I sincerely apologise to each and every one of them.

“We can offer excuses about injuries and bad luck as much as we like, but it was still 17 on 17 out there.

“I understand and accept that in view of what we’ve dished up over the last couple of games emotions will run high and there will be calls for drastic action, but the reality is now is not the time for a kneejerk response.

“Our immediate focus must be to analyse what has gone wrong in recent weeks and attempt to fix it urgently. We should remember it was only a few weeks ago we were three from three and looking like we were making a charge for the finals.

“We need to urgently regain credibility and restore some public faith during our remaining games of the season.”

The Titans face the desperate Dragons on Saturday and have four games to prove they want Henry to be their long-term coach.