Titans recruit Shannon Boyd has vowed to use the challenge presented by the Rabbitohs pack to carry his new team forward and help arrest their worrying start to the season at ANZ Stadium on Sunday.
The Titans have just the one try to their name through two games while the Rabbitohs are flying high after strong wins against the Roosters and Dragons.
The Telstra Premiership ladder will tell you it is an early-season mismatch but a fired-up former Raider has the capacity to get the Titans moving in the direction.
In his only pre-season trial Boyd was an unstoppable force in a 20-minute stint against the Broncos but the 26-year-old has failed to replicate that type of impact against both Canberra and Cronulla.
He ran for just 63 metres from eight carries in 37 minutes against the Sharks and is desperate to lay a much stronger foundation for his team against the likes of Sam Burgess, Thomas Burgess, John Sutton and Cameron Murray.
South Sydney currently rank fifth for all run metres with 3249 while the Titans sit in 14th position with almost 500 metres less from just two games and Boyd knows it is a trend that can't continue if his side are to get the win on Sunday.
Rabbitohs v Titans - Round 3
"We're definitely a long way off where we want to be and personally myself I'm a long way off where I need to be," Boyd told NRL.com.
"I've got some things to change. I've got to go out there and prove that I am going to be better and get this team back going where we need to go.
"It's hard trying to get some match fitness and that sort of thing but more than anything I think I just need to change my attitude a little bit.
"The first 15 minutes last week were really good but when we face some adversity we're sitting back and waiting for someone to change it rather than putting our hand up and doing it ourselves.
"When we're doing all that defence we need to stop feeling sorry for ourselves and try and turn the tide instead of just waiting for it to happen.
"This week we've got to have the mindset of rolling up our sleeves and getting to the end of our sets.
"They're a big pack and they're going to be a challenge so we need to match it if not be better than them."
Gold Coast captain Ryan James has moved to the left edge this season in order to accommodate the arrival of Boyd into the front row.
As he continues to understand his role at his new club, James has no doubt that Gold Coast fans will soon see the type of performances that earned Boyd Kangaroos selection in 2016.
"It's hard to come into a new team and have people expect so much of you," James said.
"He's a big body and running hard and tackling hard is what he does and that's all he needs to do for us.
"He's very capable of doing it – he's done it in patches – but we need everyone to be doing it, not just Boydy."
Through two rounds of the season the Titans are completing at just 68 per cent, although their first game was admittedly played in torrential Gold Coast rain.
But according to Boyd it is the one area of the game they need to improve most if they are to chalk up a win anytime soon.
"I know it sounds like we say the same thing every week but the truth of it is if you complete at 80 per cent it's going to be a close game," said Boyd.
"If you give the other team 55 per cent possession and they complete at 80 per cent then they're going to blow you off the park.
"If you can complete at around 80 per cent then you're going to have more of the ball and have more energy to get our carries.
"This week we've got to go out there and prove ourselves but we're a long way off the mark at the moment."
