Koni x Don is a lethal right edge combo.

On the back of signing Jarryd Hayne there was a sense of expectation around Gold Coast Titans. Hayne's arrival and inflated expectations didn't really suit the Titans as last season they had established themselves as a low key force, built around hard graft and a team culture that coach Neil Henry quickly established. Suddenly they had superstar in their midst and their struggles that started with Hayne's arrival seeped into the start of this season.

Last weekend the Titans beat Melbourne Storm in Brisbane. They didn't have Kevin Proctor, forward Ryan Simpkins went down injured in the opening moments and they are generally down on troops led by the absence of Agnatius Paasi. That adversity brought out the best in the Titans, their desire to win and rugged nature saw them fall back on the vibe that had seen them emerge as a possible top-eight team.

Of course, our lad Konrad Hurrell played his part for Gold Coast. Hurrell has been a focal point of the Titans, playing through the ups and downs of the past 12 months while maintaining his lust for footy. Hurrell could make a strong case for being the face of the Titans as he features heavily in their marketing and community work, spreading the love and good vibes; leading the way for all of us to follow.

What sets Hurrell apart is that his off-field standing on the Gold Coast is matched by his importance to the Titans on the field. Niche Cache regulars will know all about this as we've followed Hurrell's journey with the Titans closely and as soon as he enjoyed consistent footy, he made big metres and gave the Titans a point of difference. A splash of funk on top of their strong culture.

Two Titans lead their club with six tries, one of them is Hurrell and he's played a game less than the other bloke, Kane Elgey. Not only is Hurrell a try-machine, he's also third in running metres for the Titans (1,125m) which is a lot more impressive when you consider that Jarrod Wallace and Ryan James are ahead of Hurrell in metres, yet they are both middle forwards and have both played two more games than Hurrell this season.

The toko is third in offloads and first in tackle busts as well, which makes his 13 errors (first in errors) bearable. When you're top-three in run metres, offloads, tackle busts and tries, then your errors are balanced out by your attacking prowess. If you're not contributing much besides errors, then we've got a problem.

Those errors are also all good when you consider how influential Hurrell is to the Titans, especially in getting out of their own territory. Hurrell's first five games this season saw the Titans lose four of them and Hurrell averaged 8.76m/per-carry, now the Titans are on a three game win-streak with wins over Cronulla, Newcastle and Melbourne which has seen Hurrell average 10.43m/pc through those three wins.

Melbourne currently lead the NRL and Cronulla sit just behind them on the ladder, yet they were both beaten by Gold Coast. Hurrell had 16 carries for 165m against Cronulla and 14 carries for 143m against Melbourne, which is the blueprint for Hurrell as he's always eager to do the work, but that work comes with great efficiency as he's always making metres. Not only does Hurrell make big metres, he has a fantastic habit of earning a quick play-the-ball by landing on his front and then making the effort to get up quickly. Take these examples from the win over Melbourne...

Understandably, Hurrell is used as a battering-ram early in Gold Coast's sets. Above, he lines up Cameron Smith and Cameron Munster, going to work, emerging on his belly and play the footy quickly (below).

In the play above, Hurrell gets a long pass from Nathan Peats that gives him the ball wider of the forwards - hence he's running at Munster/Smith - and below, Hurrell gets a short pass which puts him directly up against Tohu Harris.

It doesn't really matter who is going to tackle Hurrell because his speed ensures that he makes metres, but against a bigger body in Harris, Hurrell is stopped in his tracks. All good though because Hurrell goes straight down on to his front and gets a quick play-the-ball...

These are examples of Hurrell taking tough carries to help Gold Coast earn some territory, but with the game on the line, Hurrell was instrumental in putting Gold Coast down Melbourne's end as well.

Hurrell got early ball, with space in front of him and there's only one outcome here as Hurrell storms down the field, making 25m and landing on his front so he can play the footy without Melbourne establishing any markers.

Two of Melbourne's tries involved Hurrell. The first saw Melbourne put Hurrell in a horrible position and you've got to forgive Hurrell for being confused here as he's got Tohu Harris, Billy Slater and Cheyse Blair all capable of getting the footy from Munster. Push in to cover Harris and Slater will get the footy, hold out to cover Slater and Harris will stroll through the gap as he did on this occassion.

This next Melbourne try doesn't actually involve any defensive mishap from Hurrell, instead highlighting Hurrell's speed and desperation. Silly folk will still hold on to their own judgements about Hurrell's ethic, his desire and defensive intensity but that's so dumb it's kinda painful. Hurrell is caught at marker below and Melbourne identify that Gold Coast are missing Hurrell and another defender down the short-side...

Hurrell did nothing wrong to end up at marker and after tackling Jordan McLean, Hurrell then sprints back to make a tackle on Munster. Although Munster passes to Blair to score, the fact that Hurrell tackle McLean and then works his backside off to make a desperate tackle on Munster shows the sort of player Hurrell is.

For his match-winning try, Hurrell shows the same desperation tag behind Anthony Don as he rises for a cross-field bomb that he knocks back. Hurrell stays engaged on the play and is perfectly positioned to snap it up and score. For Hurrell's first try, this same desperation combined with Hurrell's slept on speed enables him to score a reasonably tremendous try.

We know Hurrell is a beast and it's not all that surprising that he is hugely efficient when running the footy. Sure, he's a solid unit but when a solid unit moves as fast as Hurrell can then you've got a special package and Hurrell is not only using that speed for power, his speed has him scoring tries and covering defence; Hurrell resembles a strong all-round centre.

Before coming up against the Warriors in round 14, Gold Coast face Manly this weekend, then have a bye and face North Queensland in round 13. This will be a tricky little period for Gold Coast, however they seem to have sussed their strongest backline with Jarryd Hayne playing at left centre and Tyrone Roberts at fullback, allowing for Elgey and Ash Taylor as the halves pairing. Hayne is fairly beastly himself and Gold Coast now have a weapon on either edge to go to, although Hurrell's proving far more threatening than Hayne at the moment.

As Gold Coast have won three straight, opposition teams will identify Hurrell's carries early in a set-of-six as needing extra attention. The Titans have bolstered their big bopper ranks by adding Wallace to partner Ryan James and when them and Hurrell are involved in a set, Gold Coast tend to put themselves in great field position. We'll touch base before or after the Warriors game, but I'll leave you with this; watch for how Hurrell is used when the main objective is making metres.

Is a decoy involved? Does Hurrell run straight into forwards? Do the Titans halves shift the footy early to get Hurrell up against edge defenders? Hurrell is a legit weapon and the respect paid by opposition teams will only increase, so it's up to the Titans to adjust.

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