NRL Round 5 Preview and Prediction - New Zealand Warriors v Gold Coast Titans @ Mount Smart Stadium

New Zealand Warriors v Gold Coast Titans @ Mount Smart Stadium
 
Preview - It's the battle of two desperate teams at Mount Start Stadium in New Zealand as the Warriors and Titans collide, looking to register just their second win of the season. The home side have failed to live up to the hype once again in the first month of 2017 with 3 pretty sloppy losses, combined with a narrow 4-point escape against the Knights in Round 1. The Warriors were once against listless last week, going down 26-12 to the Dragons at Kogarah Oval in a match that they never looked like winning. The Titans went down 32-26 to Queensland rivals, the Cowboys, in a plucky performance where they gave away too many soft tries, despite fighting right until the death. With both sides sitting in the Bottom 4 in the NRL table, the loser of this game will already be long odds to play finals in 2017. 
 
History - The Warriors have an incredibly dominant record over the Titans of late, winning 11 of the past 12 matches between the pair. The Warriors have won the past 3 matches and the Titans have a pretty average return at Mount Smart Stadium, winning just 3 times from 9 visits. 
 
New Zealand Warriors’ Scouting Report - Kieran Foran was a dramatic late scratching from last week’s game and is out again as the Warriors look to play it safe with his return. Timolol Lolohea gets another reprieve, while Nathaniel Roache replaces Bunty Afoa on the bench. The Warriors have run into similar problems as last season with their defence, conceding over 20 points in all 4 games they have played this season. With Shaun Johnson having to carry the bulk of their attack, he has struggled to find his best, however he often finds his best against the Titans. 
 
Gold Coast Titans’ Scouting Report - The Titans’ injury woes continue somewhat with Agnatius Paasi out with a shoulder injury. Leivaha Pulu will start at lock with Chris Grevsmuhl joining the bench. Tyrone Roberts will play at fullback as he continues to fill in everywhere in the Titans’ spine as they try and mix and match with the injuries they have had. 
 
Verdict  - Warriors 1-6 in a high scoring game
 
I hate tipping the Warriors, but I think they can just about get over the line here. However, I see this being far from one-way traffic. I just think the Titans have too many injuries at the moment and are going to struggle defensively once again in this game, on the back of a long road trip. I see this game being a really open affair with plenty of thrills and spills and lots of points scored. The Warriors have had the wood on the Titans for a number of years so I will stick with them here, but not with a lot of confidence.