How Titans, Suns aim to shed spoons

Gold Coast’s bid to shed their twin national wooden spoons starts today when Titans and Suns players hit the training paddock for the first day of pre-season.

LET the games begin.

Gold Coast’s bid to shed their twin national wooden spoons starts on Monday when Titans and Suns players hit the training paddock for the first day of pre-season.

With the NRL and AFL sides riding a collective 29-game losing run (Titans 11, Suns 18) the pressure is on to ditch the easybeats tag.

TITANS SECURE SON OF CLUB GREAT

The Titans, winless since the 26-18 upset of Brisbane on June 9, will hit their Parkwood training paddock armed with a feel-good factor thanks to the arrival of the highly-rated Justin Holbrook as coach.

The Suns, meanwhile, have not won since April 21 yet with maturing youngsters and the looming addition of high draft picks could rightly expect better returns in 2020.

Retired Sun Michael Rischitelli, who called time on his career at the end of the 2019 season, said Gold Coast needed to include a large run-based workload into their pre-season campaign again and focus on keeping everyone healthy.

Coach Stuart Dew talks to players at training last season. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)

“Keeping the boys fit and more importantly on the park without getting injuries,” Rischitelli said of the club’s priorities.

“If the boys can get some continuity that will go a long way to helping, as long as they have all come back fit and fresh mentally and physically then it will give them the best opportunity to do well.

THE SIGN BUDARICK IS HERE FOR LONG RUN

“All the work should have been done up until now, really when the off-season started. That is what sets them up for the year.

“I imagine running will be another big part of it because footy is going that way. The running aspect of footy is probably more important than ever.”

Holbrook last week spoke of setting the standards at the club as he begins his tenure at the struggling Titans.

“We get to start fresh Monday and lay down some standards and behaviours that we’ll work in with the players over the next few months,” he said.