Bruised Brimson is Titans’ shining light

The night belonged to Johnathan Thurston, but again Gold Coast fullback AJ Brimson managed to work his way into the conversation.

The Titans’ emerging star completed a stellar first season, scoring once and producing more of the stirring goal line defence fans have quickly come to expect from the 19-year-old.

And he did it all while nursing a fractured hand and recently dislocated shoulder, according to coach Garth Brennan.

North Queensland prevailed 30-26 as Thurston starred in his final act as a professional rugby league player.

But, just as he did in Billy Slater’s final game on Queensland soil last weekend, Brimson had tongues wagging.

The teenager even did his best to spoil Thurston’s planned seventh-minute tribute, scoring in the eighth to disrupt the audience applause.

He then bravely got in the way of a rampaging Jason Taumalolo to stop a try and underline his value at both ends of the park.

“Dislocated shoulder last weekend, his bruised hand is actually a fracture but he said ‘nup, you’re not stopping me from playing, it’s my last game of the year’,” Brennan said.

“He’s one tough kid … there’s a lot of character in this football team.

“Behind the scenes you understand what’s going on in this team, there’s some real pass marks.”

The loss dropped the Titans to 14th in Brennan’s maiden season but the coach said there had been enough progress in places other than the win-loss column to consider it a progressive campaign.