The heat is already on the Newcastle Knights after they blew a 14-0 lead and wilted 34-20 in their NRL season opener against the Gold Coast Titans at an "oppressive" Skilled Park on Sunday.

Knights coach Brian Smith wondered aloud why their season opening game in Queensland kicked off at 1pm AEST - but just stopped short of blaming the loss on the conditions.

"I thought there was a rule the NRL had - maybe they lost it somewhere along the line," Smith said.

"I thought in the first month any games in Queensland were supposed to be at night or something like that."

Even a local, Titans coach John Cartwright, described it as "oppressive conditions".

Someone who knows a thing or two about high temperatures, north-west Queensland native Scott Prince added: "It reminded me of back in Mount Isa."

In the end, fresh legs proved the difference for the Titans.

Canberra recruit William Zillman - already dubbed "total package" by his new teammates - burst off the bench to score the matchwinner in the 72nd minute.

He latched onto an Esi Tonga pass and sprinted around tired Knights defenders to complete a wonderful 80m effort to bring the 16,203-strong crowd to their feet.

Another vertically challenged Titans player - Nathan Friend - was just as damaging, creating constant headaches for the Knights out of dummy half.

"On a hot day and big fellas getting tired, it was always going to be the little men (who made the difference)," Cartwright said.

"But we didn't want to be 14-0 down when it started working."

It was the Titans feeling the heat early after burrowing tries to Akuila Uate (7th minute) and Jarrod Mullen (22nd) and a Kurt Gidley penalty gave the visitors a surprise 14-0 lead by the 29th minute.

Then the Titans broke the ice.

Friend burst out of dummy half to set up Mat Rogers in the 31st minute, sparking a run of three tries in six minutes to set up a 16-14 halftime lead.

Both sides traded tries after halftime before Zillman broke Knights' hearts.

"It was not a heads up performance today. We got out-thought on some occasions and in a couple of different areas that cost us dearly," Smith said.

It was a horror debut as Knights captain for Gidley - in more ways than one.

"I asked a few questions (of the referees) for an explanation so I could tell the boys what something was awarded for and I couldn't get any response - they just told me to go away," Gidley said.

"I may as well brush the 'c' next to my name."

A riled Smith added: "It's a fine balance, because there has been a lot of captains doing that stuff to slow the game down and obviously there is a move to get it all going but we've got to be careful.

"(But) every captain should be respected, they don't hand those things out for free, you earn it."

At least Smith had one thing to smile about after the frustrating loss.

He claimed the NRL first round had already proved the game was not "in crisis" following the fallout over the Manly season launch debacle.

"I think players right across the board just answered (after) everybody climbed on the bandwagon after a couple of blokes made a mistake," he said.

"(And) our fans are too smart for all of that. They know the difference between when the game is going well and everybody tries to pile on top and makes out as if the game is in crisis.

"They understand when someone makes a blue, it doesn't mean the whole game is in turmoil."

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP