The Titans' season is going in the wrong direction and life doesn't get any easier with the dangerous Rabbitohs outfit coming to Cbus Super Stadium on Saturday.
Gold Coast have lost seven of their past eight games to slump to 15th on the ladder with only the Bulldogs below them, while Souths sit eighth with a 6-6 record and have star fullback Latrell Mitchell nearing a comeback.
The Rabbitohs are yet to fully hit their straps but are capable of blowing teams off the park on their day, as they showed in an eight-try romp against Wests Tigers ahead of the bye.
The leaky Titans defence has given up 156 points in their past five games and it's hard to see them putting the clamps on Cody Walker, Campbell Graham and Alex Johnston if they jump on the back of a solid foundation laid up front.
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The Rundown
Team news
Titans: AJ Brimson (COVID protocols) was a late withdrawal on Friday night so Jamayne Isaako moves to fullback and Esan Marsters comes in on the wing. Skipper Tino Fa'asuamaleaui will back up from Origin One but dropped back to the bench on game day with Moeaki Fotuaika to start at lock.
Jayden Campbell is set for a lengthy stint on the sideline with a hamstring injury while winger Corey Thompson (knee) is also out, replaced by Greg Marzhew.
Rabbitohs: The Rabbitohs are 1-17 with no late changes. Cameron Murray and Damien Cook both back up after their Origin performances on Wednesday night, with Cook set to share minutes with young hooker Peter Mamouzelos who was named on the bench. Tevita Tatola is also set to return from a head knock with Mark Nicholls moving to the bench.
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Key match-up
Moeaki Fotuaika v Mark Nicholls: Big Mo got through 35 minutes against the Cowboys in his return from an ankle injury and will look to increase his minutes and his impact against the powerful Bunnies pack. Nicholls has had his own injury dramas this season, missing seven games with an ankle issue before returning with 127 running metres against the Tigers in round 12. If the Titans are to turn their season around it has to start in the heavy exchanges with Fotuaika, Jarrod Wallace and Isaac Liu leading the way but they'll have to get past Nicholls and milestone man Thomas Burgess to do it.
Stat Attack
Prolific tryscorer Alex Johnston has racked up 16 line breaks in 12 games, second only to Shark Ronaldo Mulitalo (18). The Titans' leading line breaker is David Fifita with seven in nine games.
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