STAR fullback Kalyn Ponga will captain the Knights for the first time and Chris Randall will replaced the rested Jayden Brailey at hooker for the round 21 NRL clash against Brisbane at Sunshine Coast Stadium this Thursday.
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Ponga was one of five players named in Newcastle's leadership group in January and he steps up on Thursday night in place of Brailey.
Knights coach Adam O'Brien has rested Brailey given the team's four-day turnaround from the 34-24 win over Canberra and the hooker's workload. Brailey has missed just 31 minutes of game time this year.
It means Randall will have his first NRL game since breaking an arm against the Gold Coast in April.
Former skipper Mitchell Pearce returns from three games out with a hamstring strain. He replaces Phoenix Crossland and will partner Jake Clifford in the halves.
Pearce was impressed with how the young halves pairing played against Canberra.
"They were awesome," Pearce said. "I thought both the boys kicked really well and Cliff really steered the boys around. He's a really talented player.
"He ran the ball well and created heaps of space for the boys outside of him and obviously Kalyn capitalised off the back of that.
"Us as a spine need to keep making the most of the go-forward we're getting every week."
The 11th-placed Knights play Brisbane twice in their run home, which also includes games against the Sharks, Bulldogs and Titans.
