Rogers, Cannings out for Titans
Another week, another injury - but Gold Coast Titans coach John Cartwright is not panicking.
Cartwright would be forgiven for feeling a sense of deja vu after veteran pivot Mat Rogers and prop Aaron Cannings were ruled out of Sunday's tough trip to Canberra.
Dual international Rogers failed to back up from a searching test on his rib complaint.
And Cannings is expected to be sidelined for "a couple of weeks" after scans confirmed he had torn a hamstring at training on Wednesday.
They have been added to an injury list that already boasts co-captain Luke Bailey (arm), Ashley Harrison (ribs), Mark Minichiello (ankle) and Luke O'Dwyer (ankle).
In their past two seasons, the Titans have spectacularly crashed out of finals calculations under the weight of a horror injury toll.
While Cartwright admitted his side was "a bit skinny", he was confident history would not repeat.
Indeed he saw the trip to the nation's capital as a timely test of depth for the co-ladder leaders.
"I am looking forward to the squad going down there, we see it as a test to see where we are at," he said on Thursday.
"It is going to be a benefit to go down there in tough conditions and come back with a result.
"The off-season was all about players knowing their roles, a lot of guys got a lot of experience in different positions.
"It is paying benefits now.
"It is a matter of `one goes down, we bring another one in' - but we are getting pretty skinny now."
Cartwright could even find positives looking at his injury list.
Co-captain Bailey and backrower Minichiello are expected to return next week while Harrison is available but should miss the Titans' next game due to Origin duty.
O'Dwyer is the biggest concern, expected to be out for six weeks.
"The positive is that most are not long term (injuries)," Cartwright said.
"And we have been quite fortunate having (William Zillman) come into the squad.
"It has proven what a good decision it has been (recruiting him from Canberra).
"He has improved the depth in the halfback-fullback area. It allows us to have Presto (Preston Campbell) come into five-eighth again for us."
The Titans will take down an 18-strong squad with 20-year-old Bodene Thompson travelling with the team.
Campbell backed up Cartwright's confidence, conceding that the Titans of old would have been crushed under a similar injury toll.
"The boys who have been coming in have been stepping up. Times like this last year we would have got smashed up," he said on Thursday.
"But there is a different feel to the team this year. We have a different frame of mind - if we go down there with the right attitude we can come away with a win."
Post a comment about this article
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Becoming a member is free and easy, sign up here.