Broncos boost NRL finals hopes with Titans thumping
Brisbane has piled on the points in a crucial 34-0 victory that has all but ended Gold Coast's faint NRL finals hopes.
The Broncos' win over the Titans in Robina on Sunday was their biggest all season, improving a for-and-against figure that stood at -40 before kick off.
A third successive win kept them embedded in the top eight and pushed the 6-10 Titans four wins off the pace with eight games remaining.
None of the Broncos' nine previous wins this season had been by more than nine points.
External Link: Titans Broncos summary
But poor discipline and consistent errors from the hosts made it easy for the Broncos to establish a 20-0 lead by the break and slowly build that margin in a scrappy second half.
Trailing 8-0 after Kodi Nikorima opened the scoring in the second minute, the Titans looked to have a reply when Kevin Proctor busted through a gap.
But Ashley Taylor's short pass was ruled forward, while a mysterious knock-on ruling against a sure-handed Ryan James soon after took the wind out of their sails in front of 18,005 fans.
Exciting teenage centre Kotoni Staggs then jumped and gathered one-handed before throwing off Michael Gordon for a match-turning try.
External Link: Titans Broncos chalkboard
Darius Boyd then crossed for the Broncos for a 20-0 lead after 30 minutes as the Titans routinely tossed in simple errors to sabotage any signs of a fight-back.
Half-back Taylor had a night to forget, throwing two forward passes and missing touch by a big margin when looking for extra metres following a penalty in a sloppy first half.
He obstructed a chaser in the second half to continue an error-riddled night that had rookie coach Garth Brennan spinning in disgust in his chair.
The lop-sided contest followed a club-worst 54-0 thrashing at the same ground last season and reinstated the Broncos' dominance over their Queensland rivals after the Titans' upset win in Brisbane earlier this season.
External Link: Titans Broncos stats
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