Evania Pelite believes the Titans can go all the way in this season's NRLW premiership, fending off any suggestions the squad feels the weight of being touted one of the competition frontrunners.
Having nine fresh faces pull on Gold Coast colours for the first time - including International stars Jaime Chapman, Niall Williams-Guthrie, Taliah Fuimaono and Shaylee Bent - it was a tight tussle in the opening 35 minutes of their season opener against the Cowboys, but Karyn Murphy's team kicked into gear in the second half to record a 16-6 victory at home to secure the maiden two points on offer in 2023.
Despite the slow start against Queensland's newest NRL team, the experienced fullback is adamant there is absolutely no feeling of the hype that has been heaped onto her side given the number of big-name recruits that have joined the squad for 2023.
"We're not at all [feeling any pressure]," Pelite said.
"It's a huge credit to Murph and the rest of the staff in the off-season to go and recruit a really good roster.
"As players though, it's not something we think about at all."
'I'm excited to be playing here': Pelite
Preparing to face another competition heavyweight in the Broncos on Thursday, who will be hungry to get their first two points after their weekend loss to the Roosters, Pelite knows the danger they possess right across their line-up - particularly being on the wrong end of the scoreboard the last time they met their M1 rivals.
"They've got a lot of experience across the park," she told media alongside Brisbane forward Romy Teitzel at The Gabba on Monday.
"Obviously they've got Ali (Brigginshaw) directing them in the halves and they've got really big middles that will try and go through the middle third of our girls.
"They've also got really great strong finishers on the edge, so we're going to do our review on Monday and see what we can come up to get the win on Thursday here at the Gabba.
"I've actually never even been to a game here before, so I'm excited to come here and play... it's a huge privilege and a credit to where they game's going that we're able to play here."
Match: Broncos v Titans
Round 2 -
home Team
Broncos
9th Position
away Team
Titans
2nd Position
Venue: The Gabba, Brisbane
The Titans No. 1 is also expecting another big game from the NRLW debutants, who were impressive in their maiden first grade outings.
"They were outstanding," Pelite said.
"Destiny (Mino-Sinapati) was incredible for us on the wing. She played an amazing game and obviously deservingly won the player the match. Niall (Williams-Guthrie) was outstanding as well with her first game in rugby league in general.
"I was really impressed with all of our girls. I thought they did an amazing job and I'm looking forward to seeing them improve throughout the season."
Kick-off against the Broncos is at 5.40pm on Thursday at The Gabba, Brisbane.
