Golden Boyd kicks Titans to victory in thriller over Warriors

Fifteen points in the final seven minutes, ending with a golden point field goal from Tanah Boyd, saw the Titans produce a remarkable comeback to end the season with a 27-26 victory over the Warriors on Saturday. 

Trailing 26-12 with eight minutes remaining in the game, the Gold Coast stormed back with tries to Jayden Campbell and former Warrior Paul Turner, both of which were converted by Boyd.

Jayden Campbell was then caught in a high tackle in front of the posts, gifting the Titans a penalty to tie scores and force golden point.

A wayward field goal attempt from Daejarn Asi gave the Titans a seven-tackle set, and from their they put Boyd in position to seal their sixth win of the year. 

Earlier the Warriors had dominated the opening 40 minutes to lead 20-6 - racking up their biggest first-half points haul of the year - and completed all but two of their 22 sets through the first stanza. 

Their efforts through the early exchanges were aided by a clumsy showing from the Gold Coast, which saw them make handling errors in the lead up to each of the Warriors' first three tries.

Beau Fermor opened the second-half scoring, but Viliami Vailea's long-range effort looked to have ended any hope of a Gold Coast comeback as the final 10 minutes ticked over. 

But the late blitz saw the Titans power back and produce the clutch plays when they mattered. 

Match Snapshot

• The Titans trailed 26-12 with seven minutes to play, before powering back to win 27-26. 
• Tanah Boyd nailed the winning field goal three minutes into golden point
• In the opening 15 minutes Greg Marzhew knocked the ball on in the lead up to both of the Warriors' opening two tries scored by Jesse Arthars and Josh Curran. 
• After Jojo Fifita failed to defuse a bomb on 13 minutes, the Warriors crossed on the ensuing set, with Dallin Watene-Zelezniak picking up a pass which hit the ground and producing a trademark diving finish in the corner. 
• AJ Brimson got one back for the Gold Coast 10 minutes from the break, crossing for his fifth try in his last four games, but a short time later Josh Curran cancelled it out with his second. 
• Beau Fermor gave the Titans a sniff with his try four minutes into the second half which reduced the gap to 20-12, but Viliami Vailea's long-range effort a short time later killed off the threat of a comeback. 
• Titans fullback Jayden Campbell had a big night, running for 210 metres and breaking nine tackles. 

Play of the Game

Tanah Boyd came up big in the frantic closing stages, nailing a pressure penalty goal in the 80th minute to send the game to golden point before piloting a sweet field goal from 35 metres out to hand the Titans their sixth win of the season. ​The first field goal of Boyd's career capped a fine game by the No.7 who landed five from five with the boot.

What they Said

"We came up with some dumb moments on the field in that last 10 minutes, and by no means did I think that it was over [at 26-12]… we have had some tough moments this year and that was right up there.” - Warriors coach Stacey Jones

We chased the game the whole way and did some exceptional things to get to extra time, and then for Tanah to kick that the way he did was excellent. Proud of the whole team collectively. - Titans coach Justin Holbrook

What's next 

All eyes will now be on preparing for 2023 for these two sides, with hopes they can significantly improve on this season's efforts.

The Warriors will have a new head coach in Andrew Webster, with Knights forward Mitch Barnett joining Manly utility Dylan Walker as their major signings. The Gold Coast will have Kieran Foran onboard for next year.