Newcastle overcame the loss of three stars and the sending off of Jacob Saifiti to hold on and beat the Wests Tigers 14-12 at Leichhardt Oval on Sunday.
The Knights lost Kalyn Ponga and hooker Jayden Brailey in the first 15 minutes before Dom Young (professional foul) and Saifiti (high tackle) spent time off the field but a gritty defensive display against a lacklustre Wests Tigers outfit was enough to secure their first win.
Wests Tigers had every opportunity to run away with the result in Round 2 but errors proved too costly for the home side in front of a crowd left frustrated for the second consecutive week.
After losing their captain in the second minute of the match, the Knights rallied to open the scoring with a right-side shift which put Young across the line for his first try of the season.
Gagai provides for Young
Newcastle were dealt another blow when Brailey was taken from the field for a HIA but their bench men continued to deliver with Tyson Gamble sending a well-timed pass to Lachie Fitzgibbon who crashed and crawled his way to the line to score in his milestone match.
After missing several opportunities to reduce the visitors' early lead, the Wests Tigers bounced back when Asu Kepaoa picked up a loose ball to cross the stripe uncontested, but it came at a cost with centre Tommy Talau copping a high hit from former teammate Jackson Hastings.
Wests Tigers hit back through Kepaoa
Adam Doueihi's conversion was successful but the Knights took a 10-6 lead to the sheds at half-time.
The afternoon went from bad to worse for the visitors in the second term with forwards Jack Johns and Tyson Frizell both suffering game-ending ankle injuries but repeated errors from Tim Sheens' side kept the Knights in the match.
Just two minutes after Fitzgibbon was denied another four points, the Knights capitalised on an Isaiah Papali'i error and with some slick ball movement found Young on the wing for his second. Hastings missed the conversion and the score was 14-6 with 20 minutes to play.
The dismissal of Saifiti, who collected Jake Simpkin high with 15 minutes to play left the Knights with all to do defensively.
Costly errors from the Wests Tigers though eased any pressure with only a Stefano Utoikamanu try to note but it was all too late.
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Match Snapshot
- Knights skipper Kalyn Ponga left the field less than two minutes into the match and did not return after colliding with Wests Tiger Asu Kepoa.
- Knights' activated their 18th man Brodie Jones after hooker Jayden Brailey was ruled out for a head knock in the first half.
- Knights winger Dom Young was sin-binned for an early tackle on Brent Naden in the first half.
- Newcastle forward Tyson Frizell left the field in the 49th minute with an ankle injury.
- Wests Tigers forward Alex Twal looked to break his seven-year try-scoring drought before Tyson Frizell knocked the ball from his hands.
- Newcastle recruit Jackson Hastings was placed on report in the 35th minute for high contact on Tommy Talau. Talau failed his HIA and did not return to the field following the tackle.
- After hooker Jake Simpkin failed a HIA, Wests Tigers activated their 18th man Starford To'a.
- Newcastle forward Jack Johns didn't return after leaving the field in the 41st minute with an ankle injury.
- Newcastle second-rower Lachlan Fitzgibbon made it a century to remember, scoring a try and making two line breaks.
- Wests Tigers dominated with 52 per cent possession but completed at 63 per cent, making 17 errors.
Play of the Game
Knights forwards Leo Thompson and Tyson Frizell combined to keep the Leichhardt faithful in their seats on two occasions including denying Wests Tigers forward Alex Twal the opportunity to break his seven-year NRL try-scoring drought
Managing to knock the ball out of Twal's hands over the line, Frizell not only kept the drought continuing but showed it was the little defensive efforts that helped the Knights to victory.
Big Thompson tackle forces error
What They Said
“Joey (Andrew Johns) had it at number one (performance in the Knights history). There’s been a lot of tough Knights teams back in the day but what they just did I’m really proud of. I think we’ve proven in the last few weeks that things aren’t always going to go to plan for us but it doesn’t mean we can’t turn up. So there’s a really good example that we can come out the other side of it. We’re going to face some hurdles in naming the team this week, but we’ll get on with it. We deserve to put that sort of performance in at home and that’s what we’re looking forward to.” - Knights coach Adam O’Brien
“Bit of deja vu really from last week, very similar. Start well, give up a simple try and chase it all day. We’re still not gelling in and around the attacking area. We’re training well, we’re setting it all up but just the wrong pass and the pressure of chasing has affected us a little. We’re going to have to settle down a little and complete with better sets. The couple of boys that I’m going to lose for the next week, aren’t real happy and either am I.” - Tigers coach Tim Sheens
What's Next
The Knights will host the Dolphins on their first trip away from home. Adam O'Brien's men have a big challenge ahead of themselves after the heavyweight Roosters and Raiders were both defeated by the competition newcomers.
Meanwhile, the Wests Tigers will have to wait until Round 12 to return to Leichhardt, facing their first away game at Belmore on Sunday. Tim Sheens' side will need to dig deep to find a way to overcome the Bulldogs after their Round 2 upset against the Storm.