Gold Coast Titans: Herman Ese’ese reveals plan to win back trust of coach Justin Holbrook
The former Broncos and Knights cannonball played just three matches in his debut season with the Titans but has hatched a plan to earn back his place in the matchday 17.
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HERMAN Ese’ese plans to reinvent himself as a running middle forward by shedding 10 kilograms of mass to win back the trustof the Titans coaching staff.
The former Broncos and Knights cannonball played just three matches in his debut season with the Titans but has hatched a plan to earn his place back in the matchday 17.
While the pre-season for most is dominated by lifting weights, Ese’ese instead plans to drop weight of his own.
At his heaviest in 2021 Ese’ese nudged 122kg on the scales as one of the heaviest players in the competition.
That muscle mass had been an asset before rule changes introduced during the pandemic shutdown moved the goalposts towards smaller, more mobile players.
Ese’ese has already trimmed down six kilograms and is working towards losing even more.
“The whole off-season I just trained and trained and trained,” the former New Zealand and Samoan international said.
“It’s something I set myself for the next year, to be a regular first grader.
“I know myself that I’m still a good player and I can give a lot to this team.
“I think that started off with a good off-season and my belief that when I did come back to training I was in good shape.”
With a goal playing weight of 112 kilograms Ese’ese believes his improved speed and fitness will lead to gains in other parts of his game.
The most important is his discipline.
Ese’ese never got another chance in the Titans midfield after a brain-snap clothesline tackle on Penrith pocket rocket Brian To’o in Round 10.
Ese’ese accepted a three-game suspension but was not selected again that season, with coach Justin Holbrook admitting otherplayers had risen above the then-26 year old in the pecking order.
Improving his discipline and fitness in 2022 were the major feedback items he received at an end-of-season review.
“Justin said to me on the first day back that I was looking really fit and that he wanted me to turn it up a notch in pre-seasonand just go from there,” he said.
“I definitely think he believes in me, him and the coaching staff as well.
“It was just unlucky that it (the high-tackle on To’o) happened on that weekend they were cracking down on high tackles. He has to be the shortest winger in the comp so it looked even worse.”
The mountain to climb to return to the matchday 17 has risen even taller at Parkwood in 2022, with the release of fringe props Jai Whitbread and Darius Farmer clearing the path to sign veteran Isaac Liu.
Ese’ese isn’t phased by the increased competition in the Titans’ engine room.
“I’ve just got to be confident in myself,” he said.
“I know I’m a good player and I’ve just got to have belief.”
HOW TITANS CONVINCED FINAL ANTI-VAXXER
A PRESENTATION from the NRL’s chief biomedical expert informing Gold Coast Titans players of the risks and benefits of the Covid-19 vaccine was the factor that convinced the club’s final player to receive his first jab over the weekend.
The Titans will be fully inoculated against the coronavirus “well and truly” before the end of the pre-season, club chief executive Steve Mitchell confirmed on Tuesday.
“We’re happy to announce that the player group is 100 per cent first jab which is a huge step for us moving forward,” he said.
“We’re excited about that and we’ll be 100 per cent double-dosed not too far from here, well and truly before the end of the pre-season.
“That is a great outcome for us as an organisation.
“It’s been a process of education and taking everyone along on the journey and everyone in the community responds differently to what that means.
“For some people vaccinations are an easy subject and for others they are a challenging process but we are there at 100 per cent.
“We are grateful for that and we’re excited about the future.”
Unvaccinated Queensland NRL players are set to miss all 12 home games and away games inside the state.
For Titans players that meant away matches to the Broncos and Cowboys would also have been lost.
Mitchell said an educational blitzkrieg from Dr David Heslop, the biomedical expert who helped the NRL draft their pandemic protocols, and the counsel of club chief medical officer Dr Luke Eggleston, registered nurses and the Cowan Development Corporation helped convince players to make the right decision.
“I think vaccination is about being well-informed,” Mitchell said.
“We made a point of giving as much information as we could so it wasn’t overwhelming.
“It’s not just a relief, it’s nice that that our player group can really rip in to pre-season and close down for that little part without any distractions.
“Our player group can get to work and our coaching staff can get to work on what’s really important ... building this team ready for round one.”
Mitchell said he hoped other clubs and players would follow the Titans example towards 100 per cent vaccine compliance.
The Storm, Raiders, Bulldogs, Panthers and Sea Eagles are among those still embroiled in vaccination drama.
Storm coach Craig Bellamy conceded Melbourne may have to play without their captain Nelson Asofa-Solomona, who is vaccine-reluctant.
Manly prop Josh Aloiai became the first NRL player to contract the virus in November, a week before the club’s unvaccinated head of performance Don Singe was photographed training players without a mask.
Penrith’s Api Koroisau missed his side’s NRL premiership parade because he is still unvaccinated.
Titans hit 100 per cent vaccination rate
THE Gold Coast Titans will enter the 2022 NRL season with a perfect vaccination record after the club’s final holdout received his first Covid-19 jab over the weekend.
The Titans can continue on with business as usual after reaching the milestone 100 per cent mark of first vaccinations, with complete vaccination compliance expected before Christmas.
Queensland government restrictions were set to block unvaccinated players from entering the state’s three NRL stadiums from December 17.
An unvaccinated Titan would have missed 14 games in Queensland and potentially more through home finals and away fixtures in Melbourne and New Zealand.
Coach Justin Holbrook can sleep easier knowing those potential selection headaches will not factor in to his 2022 plans.
Centre Brian Kelly declined to reveal his vaccination status at a team event on Friday but is now confirmed to be among those at least partially vaccinated.
“It’s my personal health choice and I just go with that,” the 25-year-old said.
“They (Titans supporters) can do what they want but I believe my choice is my choice.
“All of Australia is under pressure with all that stuff. I just have good communication with the club and just take it step by step.”
Questions about his vaccination status had followed Kelly all pre-season but his vaccination can allow his focus to return to football and fatherhood.
The Ballina product welcomed his second child, Honey, during the off-season.
“I just had a little newborn so it will be good to go see nan and pop,” Kelly said.
“It’s going to be good to spend some quality home time with her.”
Titans still in No.9 market after moving on from Brandon Smith snub
“NO REACTION” was Gold Coast Titans CEO Steve Mitchell’s response to Brandon Smith’s signing snub and controversial comments made on the YKTR Sports podcast earlier this week.
Smith all-but confirmed he would sign with the Sydney Roosters once his contract with the Storm expired at the end of next season, in an expletive-ridden interview that lifted the lid on the signing saga that included a visit to Parkwood and the Titans.
The Titans were an eager participant in the Smith sweepstakes, having released incumbent hooker Mitch Rein to Paramatta at the end of the 2021 season, but the Storm star has instead chosen the Roosters.
“No reaction. We get on with our job," Mitchell said on Wednesday when asked about Smith.
“We know what the composition of our squad looks like through to 2025 ... so we’re very excited about the squad that we’ve currently got.”
Without Smith the Titans’ No. 9 stocks are thin, with Erin Clark and former Storm rake Aaron Booth the only recognised hookers on the list.
Mitchell would not rule out the Titans looking elsewhere for hooking depth prior to next season.
“We’re always looking for depth across the squad be it whatever position,” Mitchell said.
“Nine is a position we need to look at as well as other areas. That’s about future planning and future proofing.
“We’re well-served in the No. 9 position and there’s a real opportunity there for someone who wants to make it their own.”
On the Smith saga, Mitchell said he would be in support of changes to the current rules that allow players to shop themselves around with one year still remaining on their contracts.
“It probably needs some improvement,” he said.
“Like anything in a process, if it’s becoming problematic – and it’s obviously not ideal currently – there’s probably room to massage it somewhat.
“I would be up for change and I think our club would be too. We’ll take that discussion up with the rest of the clubs.”
Mitchell: Titans ‘100 per cent vax’d by Christmas’
GOLD Coast Titans CEO Steve Mitchell has vowed the NRL playing group will be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 by Christmas, offering a soft timeline for the club and its players to be in lock-step about the jab.
“I’m really excited about where we’re at from a vaccination rate (status), which … I thought (was) going to be problematic but we’re going to be all-bar – not even all-bar – we’re going to be at 100 per cent (vaccinated) before Christmas,” Mitchell said on Wednesday.
“That’s a great outcome for a playing squad in the NRL at the moment and that’s inclusive of all players.”
Players currently do not need to be fully vaccinated to train, however, come the start of pre-season trials in early March that will change.
Under Queensland Government requirements, from December 17 every person inside a major Stadiums Queensland venue – Cbus Stadium included – will need to show proof of two doses in order to enter.
The Titans will host the Broncos in a trial at Cbus Stadium in March.
’Kiss of death’: Ex-Titans captain issues stunning warning for Tino
A FORMER Titans captain has warned Tino Fa’asuamaleaui that accepting captaincy of the team could be the kiss of death for his time on the Gold Coast, as teammates and club executives rave about the lock’s leadership ability.
Fa’asuamaleaui said he would grab the captaincy “with two hands” should he be offered it this off-season, with halfback Toby Sexton confirming the team viewed the 20-year-old as a perfect candidate to lead them into the future.
One former captain urged Fa’asuamaleaui to treat the captaincy as a poisoned chalice.
“Tell him don’t do it,” he said.
“Every captain gets moved on to another club. It is the kiss of death.”
The sudden release of co-captain Jamal Fogarty, at his request after Sexton was appointed the Titans first-choice No.7 next season, was the latest in a run of poor endings for Titans captains.
Only two of the last 13 players to captain the Titans finished their careers with the club, with Kevin Proctor’s future uncertain beyond 2022.
List of Gold Coast Titans Captains
1. Jamal Fogarty (Raiders)
2. Jai Arrow (Rabbitohs)
3. Tyrone Roberts (Intrust Super Cup champ; chasing new deal)
4. Nathan Peats (Leigh Centurions -> Hull FC)
5. Kevin Proctor (Titans)
6. Ryan James (Raiders -> Broncos)
7. Luke Douglas (St Helens -> Leigh Centurions)
8. David Mead (Catalans -> Broncos)
9. Nate Myles (Sea Eagles -> Storm)
10. Greg Bird (Catalans)
11. Will Zillman (Retired a Titan)
12. Preston Campbell (Retired a Titan)
13. Scott Prince (Broncos)
14. Luke Bailey (Retired a Titan)
The key difference between those players and Fa’asuamaleaui lies in their injury histories and age.
Storm fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen was the youngest player to captain an NRL match in 2021 at 22, while 23-year-old Nathan Cleary skippered Penrith to a premiership.
Fa’asuamaleaui, who turns 22 in February, sees captaincy as the ultimate honour.
“I’d love it,” the 49-game middle forward said.
“Anyone who gets asked that would love it. I’d love to grab it with two hands and be the best leader I can be, for the boys and all the little kids out there too.”
Fa’asuamaleaui is a confident public speaker equally comfortable leading through his actions.
They are qualities held in high regard by his teammates, who make up one of the youngest squads in the NRL at present.
Halfback Toby Sexton said Fa’asuamaleaui would be an inspired pick.
“I think with the type of team we’ve got he’d be the perfect candidate as a captain and I’m sure the boys would love him to be captain as well,” Sexton said.
“We’re all pretty close mates as a footy side and if Tino was to be captain we’d all get on the back of that.”
Club chief executive Steve Mitchell said appointing a captain for 2022 was a decision still to be made but voiced his strong support for the young middle forward.
“You’d be hard-pressed to do any better than asking Tino,” he said.
“There’s a group in our squad who are young and starting to display leadership qualities … but you’d be hard-pressed to find a second (like Tino).”
Mitchell added that the club was built on relationships and “people being at the organisation for some time” to build cohesion.
“We want our guys there for the long-term,” he said.
With Fa’asuamaleaui’s family ties to farmland west of Gympie he has been mooted as a possible recruit for the Dolphins expansion franchise.
The captaincy of the club he wants to lead to a premiership in 2022 could be the carrot that leads Fa’asuamaleaui to sign an extension – or the parting gift that continues a rotten run of captains out the door.
One weapon in the Titans corner is Iszac Fa’asuamaleaui.
The State of Origin forward’s younger brother could hold the key to winning the brewing tug of war for Fa’asuamaleaui’s NRL future.
Iszac Fa’asuamaleaui has signed a train-and-trial contract with the Titans that will see him join the squad for pre-season in 2022 and the development squad from 2023, making him eligible for NRL selection midway through that season.
The chance to form a Fa’asuameleaui Bros. connection in the Titans midfield is one that holds strong appeal to both siblings, who have lived together since Iszac moved out of home at 16.
The presence of Iszac on the Titans roster for 2023 may help steer his star brother away from the clutches of the Redcliffe start-up team, who can bid for his services from November 1.
“Words can’t explain how good that would feel (to share the field with Iszac),” Fa’asuamaleaui said.
“We’ve pictured that since we were three years old playing touch footy together. Hopefully that does come true soon, it would be amazing and seeing mum and dad together after the game will be even better.
“I think Iszac is our future at the club.”
Iszac, a promising prop at 191 cm and 113kg and aged 19, is working in the Titans office as a trainee community and game development officer but hopes to join his big brother on the field soon.
“I 100 per cent hope my career will be with the Titans and I 100 per cent hope Tino and I can stay together at the Titans,” he said.
“We’ve spoken about the Titans and we just want to win a premiership here with the boys. I don’t think he is thinking about leaving, that’s all outside stuff.
“If I could have the opportunity to play in a grand final here with Tino that would be one of the best feelings.”
The pair have trained together extensively this off-season.
They have together vowed to lead the Titans from the front during formal fitness sessions.
Titans turn to Toby Sexton
TITANS coach Justin Holbrook will gamble the first half of the club’s premiership window on four-game playmaker Toby Sexton, telling the 20-year-old he is the Titans’ halfback of the future.
Sexton impressed in a late-season cameo before making way for a Jamal Fogarty-Tyrone Peachey halves axis for the Titans’ first finals campaign in five years.
With Fogarty (Raiders) and Peachey (Tigers) both exiting the club in recent weeks, Holbrook has placed his faith in the former Australian Schoolboys No.7 from Palm Beach Currumbin to lead the team back to the finals.
Sexton will carry plenty of responsibility in a prospective spine combination with AJ Brimson at five-eighth, emerging star Jayden Campbell at fullback and Erin Clark at hooker.
With only makeshift sixth-tackle kicking options around him, Sexton’s kicking boot will shoulder the burden of winning the battle for field position.
“There’s going to be a fair bit of responsibility on my hands,” Sexton said.
“Justin has told me that I’m going to be the half. That, as a young fella who’s only played four games, is massive for me.
“He’s putting a lot of trust in me, especially as a halfback, which is one of the main positions in the game.
“I think with JC (Campbell) out the back and AJ there specifically, I’ve got to be that level head that gets around the park.
“I don’t see that as pressure or anything, I just see that as a confidence thing, knowing that he (Holbrook) trusts me.”
With continuity in the forwards and backs, the ability of the Titans halves to find chemistry together will be critical to recapturing finals form.
Partnering a Queensland State of Origin representative in the halves has Sexton excited for their future.
“We’re pretty good mates,” Sexton said. “We’ve been on a couple of trips together and we get on really well.
“That’s a massive help for our combination initially.
“The four games I played this year were all with him as well so we’ve kind of got that steady base there we can work off.
“He’s a freak of a talent. All I’ve got to do is get him the footy and he’ll make me look good.”
Brimson has started 16 NRL matches in the halves but not since the final match of the 2019 season.
With a glut of halves experience walking out the door at Parkwood, Sexton said the addition of Parramatta veteran Will Smith was an important one.
“I think Will is going to be a massive boost for mine and AJ’s development as a pairing,” Sexton said.
“He’s been around for a long time and he’s a really quality footy player as well.”
Titans to formally discuss pulling out of race for Brandon Smith
The Gold Coast Titans will formally discuss pulling out of the race for off-contract Dally M hooker of the year Brandon Smith after an alleged off-season cocaine scandal.
The release of million-dollar playmaker Ash Taylor had given the Titans a war chest to outbid the Melbourne Storm’s initial offer, in excess of $800,000 per season, to keep the New Zealand test rake in purple past 2022.
That was before footage leaked of Smith partying with other Melbourne players with a white powder believed to be an illicit substance after the NRL grand final.
Titans chief executive Steve Mitchell said the club’s recruitment and retention committee had not yet met to review the incident, which saw Smith handed a one-game ban, a $50,000 suspended fine and axing from the Storm’s leadership group.
The committee led by culture chief Mal Meninga, recruitment manager Ezra Howe and head coach Justin Holbrook will debate whether Smith fits the Titans culture before negotiations can begin on November 1.
“It will be interesting to see where they finish,” Mitchell said.
“The culture that we’re building, the expectation is built on a value set and a purpose of making our community proud.
“Your behaviour and the way you perform on the field will engender that but that also has an obligation on how you act as a whole part off the field, your pushback in the community and the way you behave.
“If you go through the criteria and think what is the behavioural pattern here (with Smith)? What are the characteristics we’re trying to achieve? Then as a group of seven we go through that conversation and come out the other end with the right decision.
“That will be their decision to make.”
Mitchell said Smith’s values, work ethic and background would educate the decision to pursue the reigning NRL hooker of the year for 2023.
“It’s about putting together a really good collective of people first and then elite athletes,” Mitchell said.
“They’ve got to have a shared set of values and an understanding of what we’re doing together.
“The coaching staff live it, we live it as an administrative team.
“We do our best to deliver that and we hope our young men do the same.”
The Titans will add more recruits over the pre-season.
Gesture that proved Titans culture not just empty words
IT was the punch to the gut of every Gold Coast Titan and supporter alike but a flashpoint that proved the culture being built under head coach Justin Holbrook was more than hollow words.
Down by a point, 49 seconds and 95 metres away from the second finals win in Titans history, Gold Coast came within centimetres of a rugby league miracle.
It went horribly wrong in slow motion when centre Patrick Herbert tried to outwit Roosters winger Daniel Tupou with a show-and-go, realising only too late that Tupou had read the play all along.
A desperate offload to an unmarked Corey Thompson sailed wide into the stands, saving the Roosters from the greatest finals boilover in recent memory.
Thompson’s incendiary reaction, equal parts horror, frustration and rage, was the on-screen reflection of every Titans fan at once.
It was what happened next that should steel the resolve of players and supporters that this maiden finals appearance would be the first of many.
As Herbert lay shattered on the turf million-dollar recruit David Fifita put aside all thoughts but supporting a mate, offering a hand and hauling the centre back to his feet.
Moments after full-time Thompson took to Instagram to douse the flames his reaction had unwittingly fanned.
“All love for my brother,” Thompson said, sharing a picture of Herbert’s match-sealing solo try against the Cowboys from Round 21.
“Love playing outside you, we grow and move on.”
This is not a team that will implode under the weight of ego and petty backstabbing among players when things go wrong.
The culture they have built in just two years is strong.
This heartbreak will add another foundation stone to the club’s new bedrock.
Eels Covid nightmare delivers Jaylan de Groot to Titans
PARRAMATTA’S pain will be Gold Coast’s gain after a financial nightmare allowed a Langer Trophy and Mal Meninga Cup champion fullback to slip into the Titans’ clutches.
Palm Beach Currumbin graduate Jaylan de Groot dreamt of becoming the Eels next Jarryd Hayne after signing with Parramatta in 2019 but was released in a money-saving cull of all junior contracts at the club at the height of the initial outbreak.
This week the Titans signed the 18-year-old to a three-year contract to join their NRL squad on a train-and-trial basis in 2022 and 2023 before going full-time in the 2024 development squad.
De Groot became the third member of PBC’s Langer Trophy-winning spine to sign with the Titans, alongside halfback Tom Weaver and hooker Oskar Bryant.
That same trio led Tweed to the Queensland under-18s title earlier this season.
“Me, Tom and Oskar have been playing together for six or seven years now,” de Groot said.
“It’s just a gift to play with them because as a kid you don’t have that many groups that are so tight and connected and play at a high level.
“To bring that through into hopefully the NRL would be a dream come true.”
De Groot said the pain of being cut by the Eels was a chip on his shoulder to show Parramatta what they had missed out on.
“It was pretty heartbreaking news to hear,” he said.
“I was a kid watching Jarryd Hayne highlights thinking that was going to be me one day, then that call from the Eels manager kind of hurt.
“I 100 per cent believe (the NRL) is where I belong.
“I think it’s a big thing for me to show them what they lost.
“For me I just want to get in to pre-season at the Titans as quick as possible, get stuck and just show to the coaching staff what it means for me to be there and just prove how good I am and my ability to play.”
Titans rookies will front for pre-season from mid-November with veterans before Christmas.
Titans sign fastest player in club history to multi-year deal
- Nic Darveniza, August 28
THE fastest Gold Coast Titans player in history has celebrated the birth of his first child by signing a two-year contract extension to join the Titans Top 30 squad for the first time.
Development squad member Alofiana Khan-Pereira, 19, hit a top speed of 36.5km/h in a Rugby League Gold Coast A Grade match last season.
It eclipsed the 35.9km/h top speed Phillip ‘The Hound’ Sami reached chasing down Josh Addo-Carr in 2019 to earn his nickname and the previous title of Gold Coast’s fastest player.
Khan-Pereira impressed coaches with his application to training, piling on eight kilograms of muscle to reach his current playing weight of 84kg.
His reward was a significant payrise and a two-year opportunity to unleash his speed on the rest of the NRL.
Khan-Pereira said the birth of his son Prince two weeks ago had added fuel to a lifelong desire to be a part of the first Titans premiership-winning team.
“It was indescribable,” the teenager said on becoming a dad.
“Seeing him now, seeing him in person, it’s one of the best feelings.
“Having a baby is a different kind of love. I’d do anything for him.
“If anything it gives me a boost, makes me want to run even faster.”
Khan-Pereira has cheered for the Titans since moving to the region from Lismore as a nine-year-old.
He was witnessed the highs and lows and is desperate to help the Titans succeed.
“I’ve been with the Titans junior programs since I was 16,” he said.
“They were the first club to sign me up so I’d love to help them get that first premiership.
“Me and my dad has a sit-down a while ago, like ‘imagine being in the team that finally wins that first premiership.’
“I’m always thinking about that perspective. It would be amazing.”
Such is the Titans regard for Khan-Pereira’s speed the club signed him to a full-time senior contract before making his Intrust Super Cup debut.
There are shades of a young Addo-Carr in the Keebra Park graduate’s game, with deadly speed and sharp instincts that give him opportunities to use it to full effect.
Since being released from the Titans bubble to gain more senior football experience Khan-Pereira has scored six tries in two starts for Burleigh in local A Grade.
On Saturday he will line up against Israel Folau’s Southport Tigers at Owen Park at 3pm.
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