NRL: Titans laugh off Lote link

Lote Tuqiri in action for the Brisbane Broncos in 2002. Photo / Getty Images

Gold Coast coach John Cartwright has laughed off suggestions the Titans were about to announce the signing of sacked Wallabies star Lote Tuqiri yesterday.

The club had alerted media on Sunday night that a new signing would be unveiled the next morning, only to scrap a planned news conference shortly before it was due to start yesterday.

Cartwright told reporters after training he was considering another player to add a bit of depth to the Titans in case there were injuries to key players, but the deal had fallen over.

"I was just being a bit over-cautious if anything - there may have been an opportunity there, but it didn't work out."

But Cartwright said that while former Broncos flyer Tuqiri, recently sacked by the Australian Rugby Union, would be a great addition to any team - he was not the player in question.

Hooker Nathan Friend is the Titans' only player in serious doubt for Friday night's southeast Queensland derby against Brisbane, with under-20s rake Kayne Lawton a possible replacement.

- AAP