Round 2: Dragons v Titans preview
Dragons start campaign as Titans look to keep momentum rolling.
One of these two teams will come out of round 2 with the best possible culmination of competition points. St. George Illawarra are looking to kickstart their season after drawing the bye last weekend, whilst the Gold Coast are fresh off a superb display against the Tigers at Leichardt.
A lot has been said about the Dragons in pre-season, with plenty of pundits tipping them for the wooden spoon after a string of off-field incidents and some putrid displays in the trials. The Red V have a chance to silence all of those critics for at least another week and show that they mean business in 2023.
The Saints do need a confidence boost given their tough next few games where they will play Brisbane at Suncorp and Cronulla in a local derby. They will be hoping that the extra week off they got from the bye can translate into something good come Sunday afternoon at Kogarah.
The Titans are certainly not going to make it easy for the Dragons though. They were able to win comfortably at the weekend and had a number of standout performers in their team. New signing Kieran Foran was everything Titans fans had hoped for and David Fifita was a barnstorming threat on the edge.
The Gold Coast will be sweating on Foran's fitness ahead of the Sunday clash after a knock to his knee that he suffered during the game against the Tigers. In positive news, David Fifita has re-signed with the club during the week, ending all of the speculation surrounding his future and meaning fans can breathe a little easier.
Team wise, coaches Anthony Griffin and Justin Holbrook named their sides on Tuesday afternoon ahead of the clash.
For the Dragons, Jack de Belin is out after failing to overcome a calf complaint that kept him out of the Pre-Season Challenge. Francis Molo is to start alongside Blake Lawrie in the front row, whilst promising teenager Toby Couchman comes onto the bench to make his NRL debut, something Dragons fans are very excited to see. Jayden Sullivan has won the race for the number six jersey, although Talatau Amone has been named in the reserves and will be hot on Sullivan's heels for the five-eighth spot after his stand down from the NRL was lifted. Jack Bird will start at lock, whilst interestingly Moses Mbye will start at hooker, pushing Jacob Liddle to the bench.
Justin Holbrook has named no changes to the seventeen that beat the Tigers in round one. However, there is an injury cloud over star recruit Kieran Foran, with Toby Sexton named in the reserves and expected to come in if Foran is unable to take the field.
Last meeting: Round 23 2022 - Dragons 46 Titans 26
Who to watch: There are a plethora of players to choose from to keep an eye on for St. George Illawarra, mainly because we haven't seen them play yet this season. One in particular to keep an eye on though is Jayden Sullivan. Sullivan will get just his third chance to start in the halves in the NRL, and this will be the first time he does it alongside club captain Ben Hunt. Sullivan was touted as the most talented player to come from the 2019 Steelers' SG Ball winning team. Hampered by injury over the last couple of seasons, Sullivan gets his chance to prove what he can do on the big stage. With tenacity, speed, sharpness and a clever short kicking game, Sullivan could act as a real point of difference for the Dragons who need some energy and creativity in their side.
For the Titans, it's hard to go past Sam Verrills. It's no secret that the Dragons' weakness lies in their forward pack. At points during the game, it is inevitable the Titans' pack will get a roll on, and how Verrills capitalises on that dominance will be crucial to the chances of the Gold Coast in this one. There could be holes everywhere in the middle of the park and if Verrills can continue that momentum through some quick darts from acting half, the Titans could be hard to stop.
The favourite: The Dragons are slight favourites to win this one at home.
My tip: It's a hard one to pick really. The Dragons starting Mbye over Liddle is questionable at best, given Mbye isn't a noted defender by any stretch. But the Titans may be without Kieran Foran who is absolutely crucial to the structure and direction of that team.
The Dragons defence based on the trials doesn't seem to have improved. Simple defensive errors and racing out of the line indicates that they still aren't learning the basics. Yet, the Titans are notoriously inconsistent and known for their defence not being crash-hot either.
I'm going to go with the Dragons in this one. I think the game plan just writes itself with the Titans. The Dragons, at home, will have two big and strong second rowers likely running at Toby Sexton and Tannah Boyd. Fifita and Stimson will have to come in to help the smaller halves, which then exposes space around the ruck and on the fringes, which I will back the likes of Hunt, Sullivan, Liddle and Sloan to take advantage of. Dragons by 8.
