NRL Round-22: Titans vs. Eels
In the second Friday match-up of the Gold Coast, Titans welcomed the Parramatta Eels to Skilled Park.
The Titans were coming off a series of wins and were looking to challenge for second in the league table. The Eels, on the other-hand, were sitting near the middle of the standings and looking to snatch a victory from the home side in the hopes that they could move closer to a playoff spot.
Recap
The Eels looked to be in control early on, taking a lead into the half, however, the Titans would not be outdone, as they rallied and stole the victory away from the Parramatta side. In the end, the Titans were able to win handily by a score of 34-12.
The match took a little while to get going as both sides felt one another out. It was Joel Reddy who finally broke the deadlock in the 19th minute with a try for the away team. Luke Burt notched the conversion on the try giving the Eels a 6-0 lead.
The score seemed to spark the visitors, as Jarryd Hayne added to his tremendous year in the 26th minute, crossing the line for the Eels. Burt made no mistake hitting the conversion and giving the Eels a two-try, 12-0 lead.
The rest of the first half played much like the beginning, with both sides staying off the scoreboard, and the Eels were able to carry their 12-0 lead into the break.
The second half was a totally different game with the Titans taking only a minute to put their first points on the board with a Mat Rogers try and a Scott Prince conversion to cut the lead to six.
The Eels looked inept as the Titans offence was all over them, and Kevin Gordon stumbled across the line to tie the game in the 57th minute.
From that point on it was clear that the Titans were the better side, as Bodene Thompson scored five minutes later and Mark Minichiello registered two consecutive tries. Prince hit two-of-three conversions and the Titans enjoyed a 28-12 lead after the 74th minute.
Thompson put the icing on the cake with his second try of the match and sixth of the half for the home team, giving the Titans a 34-12 victory over Parramatta.
The incredible offensive outbreak from the Titans in the second half caps off weeks of positive offensive play from the Gold Coast side. Minichiello and Thompson were able to record two tries each, while Prince managed five conversions for 10 points on the day.
Analysis
The Titans now move into a tie for second place with their win over the Eels. Next week, they will take on fellow Queenslanders, the Cowboys, at home. The Cowboys are sitting near the bottom of the table, and the Titans should be able to continue their strong play and perhaps challenge for first before round-26.
The Eels are going to need better efforts down the road as they now sit in 12th position, only four points out of a playoff spot.
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