Trial win over Broncos gives Titans coach Justin Holbrook some selection headaches for Round 1

Titans coach Justin Holbrook says Saturday night’s trial win over Brisbane has given him some welcome headaches as he pieces together the selection puzzle for next week’s NRL opener.

TITANS coach Justin Holbrook says Saturday night’s trial win over Brisbane has given him some welcome headaches as he pieces together the selection puzzle for next week’s NRL opener.

Stream over 50 sports Live & On-Demand with KAYO SPORTS on your TV, computer, mobile or tablet. Just $25/month, no lock-in contract. Get your 14-day free trial and start streaming instantly

Gold Coast players had their final chance to push for Round 1 spots in the pre-season hitout at Redcliffe and they made the most of the opportunity to seal a come-from-behind 28-22 victory.

While they were without first-choice fullback AJ Brimson and props Shannon Boyd and Moeaki Fotuaika, the Titans fielded a near full-strength side and overcame an early 16-0 deficit to emerge triumphant ahead of Friday week’s trip to Canberra.

FORMER TITAN EARNS SECOND NRL CHANCE

Question marks hung over a number of positions heading into the game, most notably the backline and hooker, but there were signs of promise in the performances of halfback Ash Taylor, dummy-half Mitch Rein and centre Kallum Watkins.

Titans halfback Ash Taylor showed glimpses of his best in Saturday night’s win over Brisbane. Picture: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

Holbrook said he now faced a challenge picking his 17-man squad to face the Raiders.

“Everyone has given their best chance to be selected Round 1,” he said.

“Obviously there were a few missing, AJ, Shannon and Moe, and we’re hoping those three will all be right for Round 1. In terms of how the boys played (on Saturday), they’ve really given themselves the best chance of being in the side.

TITANS RECRUIT’S SIMPLE GOAL ON THE GOLD COAST

“We’ve had an unsettled few weeks with the Nines … and then trials and All Stars. This was the first week we’ve come back together as a group so we needed (the) game.

“Full credit to the team for fighting their way back the way we did. We got a good hitout and now we’ll concentrate on the next two weeks going into Round 1.”

Hooker Mitch Rein appears to have nailed down the no.9. Picture: AAP Image/Richard Wainwright

While he is all too aware the game will carry little significance come next weekend, Holbrook said the victory over Brisbane was a step in the right direction.

“We’ll get a lot out of that. I don’t want to downplay (the game), I thought the players were fantastic,” he said.

‘THAT’S WHERE I WANT TO BE’ - TITAN’S HALVES MISSION

“Obviously both sides were resting players for the last 20 minutes but for that first 60 minutes I was really happy with what I saw and we’ve got a lot to work with. We’ve got two weeks (until we play Canberra), which we’ll need, and we’ll get ready for Round 1 when competition points are up for grabs.”