After a first-up win against the Cronulla Sharks, the Newcastle Knights slumped to their fourth straight loss on Saturday night, going down 26-18 to a Sea Eagles side missing Tom Trbojevic.
We are only five rounds into the 2019 season, but already Newcastle faithful will be feeling like it’s Groundhog Day. Better things were expected this year. Many pundits picked the Knights to make the top eight. They still might, but two competition points from five matches, with four of those at home, means they have a long road back if they are to play in September.
Nathan Brown is rightfully under a lot of pressure. The bulk of this is currently due to the underperformance of his team. However, have they really underperformed. or was their much-vaunted recruitment drive not that good after all?
In early January 2017 Fox Sports named their selections of the best Newcastle Knights team for the 2017 season
- Peter Mata’utia
- Nathan Ross
- Dane Gagai
- Joe Wardle
- Ken Sio
- Jarrod Mullen
- Trent Hodkinson
- Josh Starling
- Rory Kostjasyn
- Korbin Sims
- Sione Mata’utia
- Mitch Barnett
- Jamie Buhrer
Interchange
- Danny Levi
- Daniel Saifiti
- Jacob Saifiti
- Sam Mataora
Soon after, Jarrod Mullen was suspended after a positive test for anabolic steroids. The Knights lurched to five wins for the year and a wooden spoon was inevitable.
The side that ran out on Saturday night, a little more than two years afterwards, was indeed vastly different:
- Kalyn Ponga
- Edrick Lee
- Hymel Hunt
- Jesse Ramien
- Shaun Kenny-Dowall
- Mason Lino
- Mitchell Pearce
- David Klemmer
- Danny Levi
- James Gavet
- Lachlan Fitzgibbon
- Mitchell Barnett
- Tim Glasby
Interchange
- Aidan Guerra
- Daniel Saifiti
- Josh King
- Connor Watson
The backline is completely different. However, of the forward pack and bench, there are five Knights who played in 2017, with Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Mitchell Barnett and Josh King not named in Fox’s best 17 for that year. So while the backline is relatively new, the forward pack does have a sizeable link back to that wooden spoon.
The largest buys in the forwards over the past two years have been David Klemmer, Aidan Guerra and Tim Glasby. Klemmer, at just 25, should be reaching his career peak and is clearly doing his job, averaging over 180 metres gained per game this year.
Glasby was not a noted metre eater at the Storm, and while his defensive work has tightened the ruck slightly, his 75-metre average per game is not enough. Similarly, Guerra’s average metres are way down at 72 metres this year and he is sadly past his best. At the age of 31 and with his horrific ankle injury on Saturday night, there has to be a question mark surrounding his return to the game at all.
(Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
The Knights are losing their matches through the forwards, a forward pack with far fewer personnel changes than the backs. Other than their first-round win against a Cronulla team that were still reeling from a number of off-season disasters, the Knights have been beaten each week in terms of both metres gained and post-contact metres. These numbers are likely skewed towards Newcastle as well, with Kalyn Ponga running for around 200 metres in his last two games.
While Pearce and Lino have borne the brunt of the criticism for the last two defeats, they are playing behind a beaten pack and as a result are looking rushed every time they get the ball. They are not getting enough opportunities to bring quality recruits Kalyn Ponga and Jesse Ramien into the game.
With the exception of Klemmer and arguably Lachlan Fitzgibbon, who is averaging 105 metres per game, no-one in that forward pack is doing enough in the go-forward statistics. That in itself is preventing its newly recruited backline from scoring enough points to win games.
Perhaps Brown would have been best to spend a larger portion of the Knights’ cap on another one or two big-metre forwards. When Klemmer takes a break the Knights struggle for any real go-forward.
Newcastle’s recruitment drive has no doubt been extensive, but that does not mean it has been as strong as many suggest. Until their forward pack starts to win the battle in the middle, their backline won’t be given enough time to shine.
Nathan Brown is now under pressure as Knights coach. That pressure should be due to the quality of the recruitment drive rather than the results of the games themselves.
Albo
Roar Rookie
I'd keep Ponga, Ramien, Klemmer & Edrick Lee and trade the rest ASAP.
Albo
Roar Rookie
Yep ! So many disappointments out there this season so far. I had them making the 8 with a deal of confidence. Stupid me. The whole pack has been a disappointment. Klemmer gets some metres but scares nobody anymore. Glasby too, scares no one in his 30 minute visit onto the park. Fitzgibbon has not been able to find Ponga to run off this year. Barnett has not improved one iota in two seasons, and surely there has to be a better 9 than Levi ? In the backs, Pearce has been awful, Lino is playing on one leg, along with Watson, SKD is hopeless, Ramien can't get the ball . Edrick Lee and Ponga are going OK. Either there is trouble in this camp, or these guys are just using up their Knights contracts for their retirement funding.
Big DaddyBi
Guest
Apart from Klemmer there is no other forward in there pack that is going to put fear into any opposition team. Take Pierce,Ponga and Ramien out and the rest of the backs are pretty average. Long way to go .
Paul
Roar Guru
The points for an against for the Knights is pretty instructive. They've scored 68 points which is only 5 points from the worst attack in the comp, yet have conceded 80 points which gives them the 4th best defence in the game. I wonder if Brown has neglected his attack, reasoning the attacking weapons he had would simply work it out for themselves or their skills would come good on the park? If Brown has worked on the defence, he's got that right, now he needs to get his attack going. He's got 4 relatively easy games to show what the Ponga, Pearces & Raimiens can do with the ball, otherwise if I was his boss, I'd be looking over Brown's shoulder for a replacement.
The Barry
Roar Guru
I don’t agree. The luxury of having someone like Klemmer making 180 metres per game is that your other forwards don’t need to click up massive metres. I don’t think the Knights have been beaten through the forwards anyway. They’re not conceding big points. The problem is they’re not scoring many. The Knights finished 11th last year. To add Klemmer, Glasby, Ramien, Lino, Lee and Mann to that roster and finish lower than that in what is arguably a weaker comp isn’t acceptable. Brown is well and truly under the pump. 1-4 with the draw they’ve had and four home games is a poor return. There’s plenty of teams that would be envious of the Knights roster and recruitment. They are underperforming massively. The buck stops with the coach.
Adam Bagnall
Roar Guru
The Knights went with quantity over quality and it shows. SKD is average, Guerrera was in decline at Roosters, and Pearce was made to look good in a great Roosters side. Klemmer is ok, but can't do it all.
Richard POWELL
Roar Rookie
Knights forwards have no penetration. I've yet to see any of them, especially Klemmer, get back and run onto the ball, bust tackles and achieve point scoring breaks.
Forty Twenty
Roar Rookie
The Knights forwards were on top against my Manly team in the second half but apart from Ponga the backs didn't threaten too much. Ponga was a real handful but was reluctant to run it at times.
AE47
Roar Rookie
But but they lost !
Forty Twenty
Roar Rookie
On the surface they appeared to recruit very well. They had some great wins last year when Pearce and Ponga were on deck and to that team they've added Klemmer and Ramien along with others plus the young Knights forwards are another year older. Most punters would have rated the Knights roster as superior to the one Manly trotted out against them on the weekend. The Knights don't look that happy to me and Manly appear to be enjoying themselves playing under the radar.
Knight Vision
Guest
You obviously didnt look at the game stats for this article. Knights have matched or dominated in the forwards stats in each game with the exception of the Panthers. Equal or more in run mtrs, total runs, faster play the ball, off loads mtrs per set, etc. Where the Knights have been beaten is the kicking game. Pearce has gone missing. No organizing, no kicking game, no execution. In the game against Manly Pearce's stats are worse than Cooper Cronks in the GF with a broken shoulder.
AE47
Roar Rookie
Look at there coach ha ha ha
Big Daddy
Guest
Levi offers no variation at hooker. Connor has only played half the matches he has been their. Take pierce out of the game and they are a leaderless lot. Brown got the people he wanted and still not performing. If his contract is performance based he won't see the year out, but who do they replace him with. Griffin ????.
souvalis
Roar Rookie
Totally agree..Glasby brought in apparently for factors other than on field skills, because he doesn’t have any of those..Gavet for power at the line, yet to see it..you’d almost be tempted to swap Sione and Ramien to get some real starch in the center and Barnett has to move back there too. Levi’s been a let down again this year... Disappointments galore in the back line..Brownie would have to have buyers regret on Lino, Hymel Hunt, Connor Watson (what happened here ?) and SKD is plain awful..not good at all..just about thru sticking up for him..