Moeaki Fotuaika knows firsthand how lethal Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow can be, but the Titans hard man has a blueprint to limiting the impact of the Dolphins No. 1 in this weekend's Sunshine Showdown.
Having trained and played alongside each other in the recent Origin series for the Maroons, Fotuaika believes 'the Hammer' can't be stopped due to his elusiveness, speed and game awareness... but he can be limited which is what the 24-year-old is encouraging his Titans teammates to do.
"I don't think you can completely shut him down because he's a great player and I've been lucky enough to play alongside him," he said.
"For us as an opposition, it's about containing him, limiting his opportunities and taking his time away from having the ball.
"It's not going to be perfect the whole 80 minutes. There will be times where he will get through the line but for us, it's about containing his impact on the game."
Match: Dolphins v Titans
Round 21 -
home Team
Dolphins
8th Position
away Team
Titans
14th Position
Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
With finals hopes still front of mind needing to win almost all of their remaining seven games, the Titans have honed in on what went wrong against the Sea Eagles last Sunday, aiming to bounce back with a complete 80-minute performance after jumping out of the blocks before fading away in their most recent showing.
"We started the game [against Manly] well. We attacked the way we wanted to attack and made a few breaks on the edges but then we couldn't seem to finish it off well and finish our last plays right.
"We made errors and they picked it up and ran 20 metres which put us on the back foot straight away in defence.
"That's why it's so disappointing because the last couple of weeks, we've been playing really well and to dish that up in the second half was really disappointing from a team perspective
"A big focus for us this weekend is finishing off our sets well and playing for the whole 80 minutes, especially when we do have the momentum, we need to continue it across the whole game."
Eager to charge off the back fence at Suncorp Stadium - much like he did with that iconic run in Origin III - the 135-gamer has relished being joined by teammate Erin Clark who has also made a knack of Fotuaika's trademark in recent times.
"I think the last month and more, he's really taken ownership of playing prop," he said.
"It's kind of weird seeing him wear No. 10 because he's a lock or playing No. 9 the last couple of years, but just watching him from the sidelines when I was in camp, he's been really good to watch... especially with his energy and his aggression that he plays with.
"Some people can get him and I mixed up off the back fence, so it's really good that we've got someone else who likes to run off the back fence as well."
