Justin Holbrook will be given the time necessary to reshape the roster and embed a winning culture at the Titans in the hope that he will lead the club to its first NRL premiership.
NRL.com reported on Monday night that Holbrook has been offered the role but international time zones and the formalisation of his exit from St Helens means an official announcement won't be forthcoming until Wednesday at the earliest.
St Helens are currently 10 points clear on the top of the Super League ladder and if they were to go all the way to the grand final their season would not finish until October 13.
Titans officials are hoping that their new coach can be in place for the start of pre-season in early November.
A former lower-grade coach at the Bulldogs, Dragons and Eels before serving as assistant to Trent Robinson at the Roosters, Holbrook has won 57 of 72 matches in two seasons at St Helens and has long been touted as a future NRL coach.
The 43-year-old will be tasked with turning an under-performing club into a premiership powerhouse but in the short term will have to do so with largely the same roster that sits last in the Telstra Premiership.
Every try from Round 19
NRL.com understands that the Titans owners are extremely reluctant to pay even a portion of a player's contract to play elsewhere, a stance CEO Steve Mitchell confirmed on Tuesday.
"We're not in favour of doing that," Mitchell said.
That means the likes of Shannon Boyd, Tyrone Peachey, Leilani Latu and Bryce Cartwright, who have come to the club on lucrative long-term contracts, are unlikely to be moved on in the short term.
"There's a genuine understanding, desire and intent from the club to have a long-term coach, a coach that can set culture and build a squad over a three to five-year period," Mitchell said.
"You would have an expectation that the coach will have input into reshaping of a roster but that happens over a period of years.
"Strategically we probably need to look forward to 2023 and '24 as to what the roster looks like then. Who's coming through locally, where we sit in regard to the composition of the squad. The coach would have some input into that but not drive the whole lot.
Why the Men of League Foundation matters
"Ultimately this region deserves to play in finals consistently, deserves to win a premiership. We need someone who can grab our player cohort over a long period of time, get the very best out of them and take the Gold Coast onto the national platform."
Unable to confirm that Holbrook had indeed been offered the position, Mitchell did concede that his coaching resume made him a compelling candidate.
"Holbrook brings a lot. He brings a lot with what he's done and where he's come from, what he's done with St Helens, but so do all of the other parties," Mitchell said.
"We've had some wonderful candidates come through."
Get Caught Up: Round 19
A committee consisting of co-owner Darryl Kelly, Titans executive chairman Dennis Watt and head of performance and culture Mal Meninga made the presentation of their preferred candidate to the Titans board on Monday.
Before recommending Holbrook, it is understood Meninga canvassed a wide range of rugby league contacts to determine his suitability.
"Mal has been so influential in the game for so long," Mitchell said.
"He's worked across all levels of the game so his insight and relationship network has been great.
"It doesn't hurt to have Mal Meninga as part of the process."