Gold Coast Titans co-owner Darryl Kelly went out on a limb when he chased Des Hasler as head coach, but he says it has already lifted the entire organisation ahead of a pivotal NRL season
For more than a decade, Kelly has invested millions of dollars of his own funds and plenty of hard work besides to turn the Titans into a premiership force.
The club has not won a finals match since 2010.
The recruitment of Hasler on a three-year deal from 2024, which followed the sacking of former coach Justin Holbrook last season, was a bold move no-one in the game saw coming.
From the outside, it appeared brutal but Kelly said the Titans had to make changes after failing to make a genuine impact on the NRL since their introduction in 2007.
This season is the first time in Titans history they have had a premiership-winning coach. Hasler won titles at Manly in 2008 and 2011 and has been one of the NRL’s leading mentors for 20 years.
Apart from veteran No.6 Kieran Foran, many of the key Titans players are young.
Inspirational skipper Tino Fa'asuamaleaui is 24. Gun centre AJ Brimson is 25. Queensland second-rower David Fifita is 24 and the list goes on. Kelly said they were now ready for the Hasler polish.
“The option was to stay where we were and keep doing what we were doing … or go hard," Kelly told AAP.
“We made a conscious decision that we needed to move to a more proven coach in Des to see what we could do.
“Especially with the young age demographic of the squad we've got. The next couple of years will determine how far this squad goes, so it was important to have an experienced coach we believe can get the best out of them."
Titans players have waxed lyrical about how Hasler has lifted intensity at training already, but Kelly said his influence went beyond that.
“I have been impressed with Des with his work commitment and the level of expectation he brings to the whole organisation. It has already lifted us all to a higher level than ever before," Kelly said.
“If work produces results, and I believe it does, then it will produce results this year.
“All of his coaching staff and support staff are working at a completely different level than ever before, and I have been at it for just over 10 years now.”
The Titans kick off their season on Saturday at home against St George Illawarra.
Not many pundits have the Titans in the top eight but that doesn’t worry Kelly. That will just feed into the siege mentality that Hasler and his teams tend to thrive on.
“We want to be the dark horse and one of the unexpected surprises the opposition get when they walk on the paddock,” Kelly said.
