2019 Newcastle Knights season explained

Year:	2019
Team Colour:	0000FF
Font Colour:	FFFFFF
League:	NRL
League Rank:	11th
League Wins:	10
League Draws:	0
League Losses:	14
Points For:	485
Points Against:	522
Ceo Title:	CEO
Coach Title:	Coach
Coach:	Nathan Brown then Kristian Woolf (interim)
Avg Attendance:	19,053
High Attendance:	25,929
Top Tries:	Kalyn Ponga (11)
Top Goals:	Kalyn Ponga (48)
Top Points:	Kalyn Ponga (140)
Next Season:	2020

The 2019 Newcastle Knights season was the 32nd in the club's history. Coached by Nathan Brown, interim coached by Kristian Woolf after Brown's contract was terminated, and captained by Mitchell Pearce, they competed in the NRL's 2019 Telstra Premiership, finishing the regular season in 11th place (out of 16).

Milestones

• Round 1: James Gavet made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the New Zealand Warriors.
• Round 1: Tim Glasby made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Melbourne Storm and scored his 1st try for the club.
• Round 1: Hymel Hunt made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the South Sydney Rabbitohs.
• Round 1: David Klemmer made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs.
• Round 1: Edrick Lee made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks and scored his 1st try for the club.
• Round 1: Kurt Mann made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the St. George Illawarra Dragons.
• Round 1: Jesse Ramien made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks.
• Round 3: Hymel Hunt played his 50th career game.
• Round 3: Jesse Ramien scored his 1st try for the club.
• Round 4: Hymel Hunt scored his 1st try for the club.
• Round 4: Edrick Lee scored his 50th career try.
• Round 4: Mason Lino made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the New Zealand Warriors.
• Round 6: Mitchell Barnett kicked his 1st career goal.
• Round 7: James Gavet scored his 1st try for the club.
• Round 9: Lachlan Fitzgibbon played his 50th career game.
• Round 9: Edrick Lee played his 100th career game.
• Round 10: Nathan Brown won his 100th career game as coach.
• Round 10: Kurt Mann scored his 1st try for the club.
• Round 13: Mason Lino kicked his 1st goal for the club.
• Round 13: Sione Mata'utia played his 100th career game.
• Round 15: Mason Lino scored his 1st try for the club.
• Round 16: Phoenix Crossland made his NRL debut for the club.
• Round 16: Shaun Kenny-Dowall captained his 1st game for the club.
• Round 16: Kurt Mann played his 100th career game.
• Round 21: Shaun Kenny-Dowall played his 50th game for the club.
• Round 21: Jacob Saifiti played his 50th career game.
• Round 22: Josh King played his 50th career game.
• Round 23: Bradman Best made his NRL debut for the club.
• Round 24: Bradman Best scored his 1st career try.
• Round 25: Starford To'a made his NRL debut for the club and scored his 1st career try.

Transfers and Re-signings

Gains

Player/Coach	Previous Club	Length
Sale Finau	Melbourne Storm	2019
James Gavet	New Zealand Warriors	2020
Tim Glasby	Melbourne Storm	2021
Hymel Hunt	South Sydney Rabbitohs	2019
David Klemmer	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	2023
Edrick Lee	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	2021
Mason Lino	New Zealand Warriors	2020
Kurt Mann	St. George Illawarra Dragons	2021
Jesse Ramien	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	2020
Kristian Woolf (assistant coach & interim head coach)	Townsville Blackhawks	2019
Zac Woolford	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	2019

Losses

Player/Coach	Club
Tyrone Amey	Maitland Pickers
Jack Cogger	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs
Matt Cooper	Eastern Suburbs Tigers
Thomas Cronan	South Newcastle Lions
Cory Denniss	South Sydney Rabbitohs
JJ Felise	Canberra Raiders
Christian Hazard	Tweed Heads Seagulls
Chris Heighington	Retirement
Trent Hodkinson	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
Tom Hughes	Eastern Suburbs Tigers
Jack Johns	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Brock Lamb	Sydney Roosters
Jacob Lillyman	Retirement
Todd Lowrie (Jersey Flegg Cup coach)	Released
Jock Madden	Wests Tigers
Chanel Mata'utia	Cessnock Goannas
Pat Mata'utia	Western Suburbs Rosellas
Nick Meaney	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs
Brent Naden	Penrith Panthers
Dylan Phythian	Contract terminated
Michael Potter (assistant coach)	Released
Ken Sio	Salford Red Devils
Tom Starling	Canberra Raiders
Simon Woolford (ISP NSW coach)	Huddersfield Giants
Luke Yates	London Broncos

Promoted juniors

Player	Junior side
Mitch Andrews	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup
Bradman Best	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup
Kiah Cooper	Knights Intrust Super Premiership NSW
Mat Croker	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup
Phoenix Crossland	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup
Beau Fermor	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup
Jacob Gagai	Knights Intrust Super Premiership NSW
Tex Hoy	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup
Luke Huth	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup
Jirah Momoisea	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup
Chris Randall	Knights Intrust Super Premiership NSW
Simi Sasagi	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup
Starford To'a	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup

Change of role

Player/Coach	New role
Scott Dureau (S. G. Ball Cup coach)	Knights Jersey Flegg Cup coach
Zac Hosking	Knights second-tier squad

Re-signings

Player/Coach	Re-signed to
Bradman Best	2022
Phoenix Crossland	2021
Beau Fermor	2020
Lachlan Fitzgibbon	2021
Tex Hoy	2021
Jirah Momoisea	2020
Simi Sasagi	2020
Starford To'a	2021

Player contract situations

2019 (left)	2020	2021	2022	2023
Mitch Andrews^[1]	Mitchell Barnett^[2]	Phoenix Crossland^[3]	Bradman Best	David Klemmer^[4]
Jamie Buhrer^[5]	Mat Croker^[6]	Lachlan Fitzgibbon^[7]
Kiah Cooper^[8]	Herman Ese'ese^[9]	Tim Glasby^[10]
Sale Finau^[11]	Beau Fermor^[12]	Tex Hoy^[13]
Jacob Gagai^[14]	Aidan Guerra^[15]	Edrick Lee^[16]
James Gavet^[17]	Hymel Hunt^[18]	Kurt Mann^[19]
Slade Griffin	Luke Huth	Sione Mata'utia^[20]
Shaun Kenny-Dowall^[21]	Brodie Jones^[22]	Mitchell Pearce^[23]
Brayden Musgrove^[24]	Josh King^[25]	Kalyn Ponga^[26]
Jesse Ramien^[27]	Danny Levi^[28]	Starford To'a^[29]
Nathan Ross^[30]	Mason Lino^[31]
Sam Stone^[32]	Tautau Moga^[33]
Zac Woolford^[34]	Jirah Momoisea
	Chris Randall^[35]
	Daniel Saifiti^[36]
	Jacob Saifiti
	Simi Sasagi^[37]
	Pasami Saulo^[38]
	Connor Watson^[39]

Jerseys and sponsors

In 2019, the Knights' jerseys were made by ISC and their major sponsor is nib Health Funds.

Fixtures

Pre-season trials

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Score	Tries	Goals	Attendance
Saturday, 23 February	Trial 1	St. George Illawarra Dragons	WIN Stadium	10  - 18	L.Fitzgibbon, E.Lee	K.Ponga (1/2)
Saturday, 2 March	Trial 2	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	Maitland No.1 Sportsground	6  - 30	S.To'a	K.Ponga (1/1)
Legend:

Regular season

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Score	Tries	Goals	Attendance
15 March	1	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	McDonald Jones Stadium	14  - 8 ^[40]	T. Glasby, E. Lee	K. Ponga (3/3)	21,813
23 March	2	Penrith Panthers	McDonald Jones Stadium	14  - 16 ^[41]	M. Barnett, E. Lee	K. Ponga (3/5)	19,451
29 March	3	Canberra Raiders	GIO Stadium	10  - 17 ^[42]	S. Kenny-Dowall, J. Ramien	K. Ponga (1/2)	10,585
7 April	4	St. George Illawarra Dragons	McDonald Jones Stadium	12-13^[43]	E. Lee, H. Hunt.	K. Ponga (1/2)	19,105
13 April	5	Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles	McDonald Jones Stadium	18-26	E. Lee, A. Guerra, M. Barnett	K. Ponga (3/3)	21,779
21 April	6	Gold Coast Titans	Cbus Super Stadium	38-14	H. Hunt, M. Barnett, K. Ponga	M. Barnett (1/3)	11,654
28 April	7	Parramatta Eels	McDonald Jones Stadium	28-14	K. Ponga, L. Fitzgibbon, J. Gavet, M. Pearce	K. Ponga (4/4)	19,604
5 May	8	New Zealand Warriors	Mt Smart Stadium	36-18	M. Pearce, S. Kenny-Dowall, S. Mata'utia, H. Hunt, K. Ponga	K. Ponga (4/4)	14,975
11 May	9	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Suncorp Stadium	22-10	H. Hunt, M. Pearce, L. Fitzgibbon, K. Ponga	K. Ponga (3/4)	25,292
19 May	10	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Glen Willow Oval	45-12	T. Glasby, K. Ponga 2, K. Mann, S. Kenny-Dowall, M. Pearce, C. Watson	K. Ponga (6/7)	9,267
24 May	11	Sydney Roosters	McDonald Jones Stadium	38-12	H. Hunt, K. Ponga, M. Pearce, C. Watson, E. Lee	K. Ponga (7/7) M. Barnett (2/2)	25,929
		12
7 June	13	South Sydney Rabbitohs	ANZ Stadium	20-12	H. Hunt, M. Barnett, C. Watson	M. Lino (4/5)	8,253
15 June	14	Melbourne Storm	AAMI Park	34-4	H. Hunt	-	16,313
29 June	15	Brisbane Broncos	McDonald Jones Stadium	26-12	E. Lee, L. Fitzgibbon, S. Kenny-Dowall, M. Lino	M. Lino (5/5)	24,397
6 July	16	New Zealand Warriors	McDonald Jones Stadium
12 July	17	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	McDonald Jones Stadium
20 July	18	Sydney Roosters	Sydney Cricket Ground
26 July	19	Wests Tigers	McDonald Jones Stadium
3 August	20	Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles	Lottoland
10 August	21	Parramatta Eels	Bankwest Stadium
17 August	22	North Queensland Cowboys	McDonald Jones Stadium
24 August	23	Wests Tigers	Campbelltown Stadium
31 August	24	Gold Coast Titans	McDonald Jones Stadium
8 September	25	Penrith Panthers	Panthers Stadium
Legend:

Statistics

Name	Appearances	Tries	Goals	Field Goals	Points	Captain	Age
	21	7	3	0	34	0	25
	3	1	0	0	4	0	18
	9	0	0	0	0	1	30
	1	0	0	0	0	0	19
	18	2	0	0	8	0	25
	21	5	0	0	20	0	25
	18	1	0	0	4	0	30
	21	2	0	0	8	0	30
	12	2	0	0	8	0	31
	24	9	0	0	36	0	26
	23	8	0	0	32	1	31
	13	0	0	0	0	0	24
	21	0	0	0	0	0	26
	14	6	0	0	24	0	27
	17	0	0	0	0	0	24
	12	2	33	0	74	0	25
	19	1	0	0	4	0	26
	22	5	0	0	20	0	23
	6	2	0	0	8	0	26
	23	8	0	1	33	23	30
	20	11	48	0	140	0	21
	17	2	0	0	8	0	22
	21	0	0	0	0	0	23
	7	0	0	0	0	0	23
	3	0	0	0	0	0	21
	1	1	0	0	4	0	19
	21	4	0	0	16	0	23
Totals	24	79	84	1	485	-	Average: 25

27 players used.

Source:^[44]

Representative honours

See also: List of Newcastle Knights representatives.

The following players appeared in a representative match in 2019.

Australia

• David Klemmer

Australian Men's Nines

• Kalyn Ponga

Australian Schoolboys

• Mitchell Black
• Cooper Jenkins

Indigenous All Stars

• Jesse Ramien

Junior Kangaroos

• Kalyn Ponga

Junior Kiwis

• Christian Ma'anaima
• Simi Sasagi (squad member)
• Daniel Ticehurst
• Starford To'a

Māori All Stars

• Danny Levi
• Kalyn Ponga

New South Wales

• David Klemmer
• Mitchell Pearce
• Daniel Saifiti

New South Wales under-16s

• Max Bradbury
• Lachlan Crouch
• Oryn Keeley
• Fletcher Myers
• Noah Nailagoliva
• Jonah Pezet
• Noah Reed

New South Wales under-18s

• Bradman Best
• Mitchell Black

New South Wales under-20s

• Mat Croker
• Phoenix Crossland (20th man)
• Tex Hoy
• Luke Huth

New Zealand Nines

• Starford To'a (squad member)

Queensland

• Tim Glasby
• Kalyn Ponga

Queensland under-20s

• Brandon Russell (squad member)

Samoa

• Herman Ese'ese
• James Gavet
• Hymel Hunt
• Mason Lino

Samoan Nines

• James Gavet (squad member)
• Danny Levi

Tonga

• Kristian Woolf (coach)

Notes and References

1. Web site: TOOHEY'S NEWS | Why the Knights may struggle to sign more top-end stars. BARRY. TOOHEY. November 2, 2019. Newcastle Herald.
2. Web site: NewcastleKnights.com.au . Mitch Barnett re-signs with Knights . Zero Tackle . 2017-03-05 . 2017-03-09.
3. Web site: Knights re-sign three bright prospects. 2 November 2018. Newcastle Knights. 22 December 2018.
4. Web site: Knights secure Origin and Test enforcer Klemmer. 26 November 2018. 26 November 2018.
5. Web site: In the News: Jamie Buhrer joins Griffin in retirement. November 14, 2019. Newcastle Knights.
6. Web site: Young Knights building pathways. 23 November 2017. 6 November 2018.
7. Web site: Knights re-sign Fitzgibbon - Zero Tackle. 5 November 2018. 6 November 2018.
8. Web site: TOOHEY'S NEWS - Kalyn Ponga's shock fullback replacement during Origin. BARRY. TOOHEY. 1 June 2019. Newcastle Herald. 5 June 2019.
9. Web site: Knights sign Herman Ese'ese - Zero Tackle. 27 July 2017. 1 November 2017.
10. Web site: Tim Glasby signs with Knights - Zero Tackle. 16 May 2018. 6 October 2018.
11. Web site: BARRY TOOHEY - Toohey's News: Knights set to smash membership record. BARRY. TOOHEY. 2 February 2019. Newcastle Herald. 4 February 2019.
12. Web site: Knights re-sign 20s Player of the Year. 6 November 2018. 6 November 2018.
13. Web site: Knights extend young guns Hoy and Momoisea. July 2, 2019. Newcastle Knights.
14. Web site: Knights name big guns for Dragons trial. 19 February 2019. Newcastle Knights. 19 February 2019.
15. Web site: Newcastle Knights sign Aidan Guerra - Zero Tackle. 15 June 2017. 1 November 2017.
16. Web site: Knights add Lee - Zero Tackle. 25 June 2018. 6 October 2018.
17. Web site: James Gavet: Huddersfield Giants sign Samoa and Newcastle Knights prop. October 17, 2019. www.bbc.com.
18. Web site: Hymel Hunt inks new Knights deal. November 4, 2019. Newcastle Knights.
19. Web site: Knights slay the Dragons in Kurt Mann poaching. Joseph. Moorhead. 9 December 2018. 10 December 2018.
20. Web site: Knights re-sign Sione Mata'utia - Zero Tackle. 28 June 2018. 29 June 2018.
21. Web site: NRL 2019: Shaun Kenny-Dowall, Newcastle Knights, UK Super League, Panthers vs Knights. 6 September 2019.
22. Web site: Knights re-sign promising backrower Jones. November 5, 2019. Newcastle Knights.
23. Web site: Newcastle Knights sign Mitchell Pearce - Zero Tackle. 30 November 2017. 9 March 2018.
24. Web site: Origin star wants out of struggling Dragons. wwos.nine.com.au.
25. Web site: King secures contract extension. 30 March 2018. 30 March 2018.
26. Web site: Kalyn Ponga signs with Knights. 1 November 2017.
27. Web site: Statement on future of Jesse Ramien. August 1, 2019. Newcastle Knights.
28. Web site: NewcastleKnights.com.au . Newcastle Knights re-sign Danny Levi . Zero Tackle . 2017-04-05 . 2017-04-21.
29. Web site: Exciting back Starford To’a awarded new deal. 24 June 2019. Newcastle Knights. 25 June 2019.
30. Web site: Nathan Ross announces retirement. 2 April 2019. Newcastle Knights. 3 April 2019.
31. Web site: Lino becomes a Knight - Zero Tackle. 25 September 2018. 6 October 2018.
32. Web site: Knights grant backrower Stone release from contract. 25 June 2019. Newcastle Knights. 25 June 2019.
33. Web site: Newcastle sign Tautau Moga - Zero Tackle. 18 July 2017. 1 November 2017.
34. Web site: Departures! Goodbye to Knights leaving in 2019. September 18, 2019. Newcastle Knights.
35. Web site: Day Two: Feeling the burn. Newcastle Knights.
36. Web site: Saifitis extend until 2020. NRL Digital. Media. 23 October 2017.
37. Web site: Exciting teen prospect Sasagi extends contract. 17 December 2018. Newcastle Knights. 17 December 2018.
38. Web site: Knights re-sign Pasami Saulo. NRL Digital. Media. 13 November 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171113114817/http://www.newcastleknights.com.au/news/2017/11/10/knights_re_sign_pasa.af_news.html. 13 November 2017. dead. dmy-all.
39. Web site: Connor Watson to join Knights - Zero Tackle. 24 July 2017. 1 November 2017.
40. News: Lee intercept try gives Knights win over Sharks. Keeble. Brett. 15 March 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190322122259/https://www.nrl.com/news/2019/03/15/edrick-lee-intercept-gives-knights-win-over-sharks/. 22 March 2019. live.
41. News: Maloney's heroics inspire gutsy Panthers in Newcastle. Brett. Keeble. 23 March 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190331072935/https://www.nrl.com/news/2019/03/23/penrith-bounce-back-with-tight-win-over-newcastle/. 31 March 2019. live.
42. News: Nicoll-Klokstad stars as Raiders outlast Knights. Scott. Hazlewood. 29 March 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190331072935/https://www.nrl.com/news/2019/03/23/penrith-bounce-back-with-tight-win-over-newcastle/. live. 31 March 2019.
43. Web site: Draw, Scores & Results - 2019 NRL Premiership Season. National Rugby League. en. 2019-05-23.
44. Web site: NRL 2019 - Newcastle Knights - Rugby League Project. www.rugbyleagueproject.org. 3 April 2019.