Gold Coast Titans comeback to win 24-20 over Newcastle Knights
After a week of off-field dramas, the Gold Coast Titans have completed a stunning comeback, as the Knights completely fell apart to blow a 20-point lead.
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The Gold Coast Titans have snagged one of their best victories in recent years, overcoming a 20 point deficit to topple the Knights 24-20 in the Hunter.
Having not bagged a win since besting the Roosters 30-12 in Round 4, iot’s a monumental moment in the club’s season, just days after Des Hasler’s potential demise began filling back pages.
Outside of an early penalty goal to Newcastle, the game began an arm wrestle between both sides as the forwards stole the limelight for each side, and it took a barnstorming back-rower to cross for the game’s opener.
A routine shift to the left saw Fletcher Sharpe find Dylan Lucas with a nifty short-ball, the edge forward running over the top of the returning Jayden Campbell to dot down for a well-earned try.
The floodgates began to budge for Newcastle after back-to-back tries, largely thanks to the home side’s dynamic centre pairing.
First a Bradman Best flick pass sent Marzhew down the touchline, finding an enigmatic Sharpe to touch down for his fourth try in seven days, before a short-ball from Dane Gagai handed a rare try to middle forward Mat Croker.
Initially deemed no try by Belinda Sharpe, the Bunker found clear evidence of Croker planting the ball down to extend Newcastle’s lead to 20.
While ‘Crokes’ scored the try, Jacob Saifiti was the standout in the Knights’ middle third, the former New South Welshman running for 172 metres in the opening 33 minutes, stamping his claim for a return to the Origin arena.
The Titans did manage to capitalise shortly after ‘JSaf’ left the field for a well earned break, a half-break from Jaylan de Groot leading to a sneaky offload to Campbell, lofting the ball over to Phillip Sami to open the Titan’s account.
Despite a dour end to the half, it signified just the third time this season that Newcastle had crossed the 20-point barrier, just days out from the impending announcement of Dom Young’s return to the club.
While Novocastrians began to dream of their former star returning on the wing, Gold Coast fans celebrated the former Maroon they had out wide as Sami doubled his try tally for the afternoon.
After camping themselves on Newcastle’s line, Campbell dug into the line to find de Groot out the back, throwing a bullet pass to Sami to score unmarked after Marzhew jammed in on centre Jojo Fifita.
Despite applying a stack of pressure on Newcastle’s line, a lack of direction, and poor handling, constantly shot the Gold Coast outfit in the foot as they attempted to apply pressure.
It took a freakish offload from Khan-Pereira to break the hoodoo, the NRL’s fastest man flicking the ball inside to AJ Brimson in the corner just millimetres before being dragged into touch.
Head coach Adam O’Brien touched on the disappearance of the lead after the game, and the under-fire coach didn’t miss in his analysis.
“It’s not a good habit to get in, getting ahead of ourselves after one game, and I’m not saying it’s everybody that did that, but when we get into a good lead, and then fell into a hole at the back-end of the first-half and beginning of the second.
“It’s embarrassing really.”
The Knights nearly struck back after Marzhew’s break down the left edge saw the hulking Samoan kick it in field, only for Origin bolter Beau Fermor to defuse the play.
However the game’s biggest moment came with just over two minutes on the clock, a courageous Beau Fermor hit-up leading to a penalty, and getting the Titans into field position in the dying moments.
Swinging the ball to the left, a half-break from Khan-Pereira saw the flyer find the matchwinning moment, grubbering back inside to find Brimson for his double, arguably the moment of the Titan’s season so far.
Campbell’s boot handing the side a 24-20 lead, and eventual win after the side held out Newcastle in the dying moments.
It’s the first time this season the Knights have scored 20+ points and lost, and there’s a key component to the compounding losses according to O’Brien.
“I was never concerned when we had the forwards. We had them for the Dolphins game, we scored 26, next game we had them was the Souths game, we scored 30.
“The errors are coming from out wide. The outside backs are making all the errors and it’s costing our middle a little bit.”
It leaves both sides with 3-6 records after the opening ten rounds, and both coaches sweating heading into the Origin period, although Des will be the man sleeping a little easier tonight.
Even when quizzed on how good it felt to ‘stick it to the doubters’ after the game, Hasler smirked, and kept it short and sweet.
“Nah, I’m not like that mate.”
SENSATIONAL SAIFITI PUTS LAURIE ON NOTICE
You ask anyone on their four prop rotation for New South Wales, and you’ll get near identical answers from each and everyone you asked.
Payne Haas, Terrell May, Mitch Barnett, and Spencer Leniu. It’s nearly universal.
Not if you ask Jacob Saifiti. The barnstorming prop, who played a lonesome one Origin game three years ago, was unreal for Newcastle, running for over 170 metres and making 15 tackles in the first-half alone.
You think the Blues forward pack is settled? Guess again.
KNIGHTS’ ATTACK BACK ON TRACK
After a horrendous start to the season for Newcastle’s attack, the club has bounced back monumentally with their confidence on the rise.
The Knights scored a dismal 36 points between Rounds 3 and 8, averaging six points per game as wooden spoon chatter began to ramp up in the Hunter.
Flash forward a fortnight, and Newcastle have managed to score 50 points in 120 minutes of play, some 40% of their points this season.
They’re not afraid to throw the ball around now, and the flare is beginning to stick.
FERMOR FIRES AS FIFITA FIZZLES
A few years ago, David Fifita dictated the headlines, while thoughts of ‘this Beau Fermor goes all right’ began to ring around the game.
Now, while an injured Fifita’s position at the club begins to be questioned, Fermor has bolted right into Queensland contention, and a play late in the game showed exactly why the former Knight is well in selection talks.
While most will talk about the penalty on Fermor that handed the Gold Coast field position, it was the run itself that showed why Beau’s stocks are so high at the Titans.
Three minutes to go, 3rd tackle, Fermor was the only Gold Coast forward back onside. Most were huffing and puffing on halfway still, while Fermor bolted in from the edge to take the hit-up that ultimately helped win the game for the Titans.
And to add to the back-rower’s plight, it seems he’ll be able to reignite his combination with Kiwi veteran Kieran Foran, who hasn’t played this season yet, sooner rather than later.
“There’s a very good chance (of Foran returning next week). We’ll throw him in the mix, but he’s got to get through the fitness test first,” Hasler told the press post-game.
Originally published as Gold Coast Titans comeback to win 24-20 over Newcastle Knights
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