For a split second as he was gripped by excruciating pain young Brisbane fullback Josh Hoffman feared he had broken his leg.

The pain ripping through his body was so severe he immediately thought his season was "gone".

He was in agony rolling on the ground after being dragged down from behind in a desperate tackle by Gold Coast winger Esi Tonga late in the first half of Brisbane's gutsy 16-8 NRL at Skilled Park.

"I thought straight away I'd broken it," Hoffman told AAP before leaving the ground on crutches.

"I didn't here any cracking sounds but the pain was horrible.

"I've never experienced anything so painful in my life."

Hoffman was able to get up and walk after a few minutes but could not put any pressure on his leg and was immediately taken into the dressing room.

He did not appear for the second half.

The early medical report of a "lower leg injury" was later updated to a severely corked shin which could sideline him for one to two weeks.

Youngster Gerard Beale moved from the wing to fullback for the second half and is the most likely stand-in next Friday night against Penrith at Suncorp Stadium.

Beale, who had earlier dropped a Scott Prince bomb cold under no pressure, produced the defensive play of the night in denying flying Titans fullback William Zillman a certain try in the 58th minute with a miraculous tackle.

Coach Anthony Griffin, who'll keep Beale in the fullback jumper in Hoffman's absence was full of praise for the 20-year-old who's been under pressure to live up the hype that surrounds him.

"He dropped that ball but he took a few others and I thought he was terrific out of dummy-half for us coming out of our own end all night," said Griffin.

"He was always poking through and getting us on the front foot, he had a real good game.

"He's been going pretty well, he's first game against the Cowboys was terrific.

"The way he plays shows you he has matured a little bit and to pull of a few big plays in pressure situations won't do him any harm."

Griffin recognised the gutsy defensive effort for the second week running saying it was a "hard game to watch"

"It was full of character defensively," he said.

"Gerard Beale saved us once there and near the end we scrambled to save the last one (Zillman again)."

After it emerged Brisbane had won with only 40 per cent possession, skipper Darren Lockyer warned Brisbane could not expect to keep defending errors and winning.

"We're making it a bit hard for ourselves dropping a bit of ball, but if we get that right with the footy, it will make things a lot easier," he said.

Apart from Hoffman, Brisbane will have to check the health of forward utility Ben Te'o who was limping badly after the game after suffering a cork.

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP