Gold Coast Titans sponsor blasted after walking away

THE Gold Coast Titans have been dealt a cruel blow with a major sponsor reportedly parting ways with the club.

National construction and event hire giant TFH is ready to tear up its six-figure deal with the club, according to The Courier Mail, after star forward Ryan James' awkward Welcome to Country gaffe at the NRL grand final.

James, an indigenous player, was invited to deliver the speech pre-game and all was going well until he forgot his words.

"As a game we stand together, side-by-side … I'm lost," James said.

The prop received plenty of support from the crowd with cheers, while players from both Canberra and the Sydney Roosters could be seen smiling.

But the Titans' major sponsor saw it differently, labelling the blunder "embarrassing" and "offensive".

"The embarrassing performance of Ryan James in his speech last weekend was offensive and weighed heavily on this decision," TFH director Brett Thomas reportedly wrote in a letter to the club.

The company and NRL side have been linked since 2012 but their partnership has been ended with the sponsor also blaming poor on-field efforts.

TFH's decision to throw James under the bus over his momentary brain fade wasn't received well.

"If this is the real reason this is a disgrace," Fox Sports' Dan Ginnane tweeted.

"What a s*** cop-out from TFH," added Fox Sports' Mark Gottlieb. "Ryan James is one of the best role models in rugby league who made an honest mistake. He's one of the game's good guys."

Inside Sport magazine editor James Smith tweeted: "Really harsh, this. All that happened was we laughed because it wasn't us, and then we all got on with our lives. And now this? This guy is a terrific ambassador for our game. Lovely fellah too."

Nine news sports reporter Michael Atkinson labelled the decision "weak", and  AAP reporter Scott Bailey wrote "the only embarrassment in all of this is the sponsor".

Sydney Morning Herald sports writer Phil Lutton added: "You would go a long way to find a shitter excuse than this for a company to get out of a sponsorship. Everyone felt for Ryan James apart from TFH apparently."

"This seems to be going real good for the sponsor," wrote AAP's Steve Zemek. "If there was a Dally M for good blokes, Ryan James would win."

AAP's Oliver Caffrey: "Someone makes a honest, human mistake and you throw them under the bus to justify terminating a club sponsorship?"

Nine's Michael Atkinson: "Reckon James, a proud indigenous person, deliberately forgot the words to embarrass not only himself but his indigenous brothers & sisters (if they even were, which I doubt most were)?! This is a pathetic excuse from a corporation as big as TFH."