Scott Prince made a triumphant return from injury when the Titans had a deserved and entertaining win over the Panthers at Skilled Park last night.
Prince scored one of the Titans' six tries and kicked seven goals from as many attempts for an 18-point haul in a clash of thehigh-flyers before a crowd of 15,430.
It was 12-12 at halftime but 20 unanswered points in the first 28 minutes of the second spell sealed a meritorious win for Titans.
The Panthers stormed back with two late tries by try-scoring machine Lachlan Coote - he now has 11 for the season - but the Titans held on and received a rousing reception from their home fans.
The second-placed Panthers were defending a four-game winning streak, which included a 26-18 victory over the West Tigers last weekend, while the third-placed Titans were buoyed by a win over Manly at Brookvale on Monday.
The Panthers lost Kiwi Frank Pritchard to a leg injury in the warm-up, which will send a scare through the Kiwis camp, while the Titans were boosted by the return of Prince from a broken thumb.
But the Panthers struck after five minutes when fullback Lachlan Coote scored his ninth try of the season after he grabbed the rebound from a Luke Walsh bomb.
The Titans equalised midway through the spell, in almost identical fashion when Prince collected his own bomb, which had been fumbled by Brad Tighe, and they took the lead five minutes later when Anthony Laffranchi scored after a lovely off-load from Preston Campbell.
But it was back to 12-12 two minutes later when Travis Burns scored after a well-timed pass from Luke Lewis.
The Titans regained the lead seven minutes into the second spell through an Ashley Harrison try.
Consistent Gold Coast pressure eventually told 15 minutes from the end when former Warrior Clinton Toopi took a line-ball pass from William Zillman and veered infield to score by the posts.
The Titans were on fire now and they scored their fifth try 12 minutes from the end, Greg Bird finishing off a 60-metre move.
Titans 38 (S. Prince, A. Laffranchi, A. Harrison, C. Toopi, G. Bird, L. Bailey tries, Prince 7 gls) Panthers 24 (L. Coote, 3, T. Burns tries, M. Gordon 4 gls). Halftime: 12-12.
