A highly emotional Josh King broke down in tears as he told Knights teammates of the "toughest decision of my life" - to quit the club and sign a two-year deal with the Melbourne Storm.
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Only hours after teammate Connor Watson announced on Tuesday he would be joining the Sydney Roosters in 2022, King fronted the Knights playing group to let them know he had also made a call on his future and was heading to the defending NRL premiers next season.
"It was pretty emotional, yeah," King told the Newcastle Herald.
"A lot of the blokes in that room are my best mates, not just in footy but in life. I love bouncing into training every day and seeing everybody and having a joke and doing stuff with them on our days off - it's like a second family.
"So yeah, it was really tough getting up there and announcing it to everyone. But that's footy. You sometimes have to make really tough calls and that's what I've done."
King admits the interest from the Storm was "humbling and exciting" when he was first told by his manager they were keen to descuss his future after the Knights-Storm game a month ago.
"It came totally out of the blue if I'm being honest about it," King said.
"After the Melbourne game, I had a phonecall from my manager to say the Storm were interested in me and wanted to have a chat.
"My first reaction was just excitement I guess that a club like Melbourne would be interested in someone like me.
"From there, I had a zoom chat with Craig Bellamy and Frank Ponissi where we just talked about the opportunities and possibilities and it went from there.
"They offered me a contract and when an opportunity like that comes up, it was pretty humbling and exciting for someone like me, a young fella from Singleton.
"I don't think they pick players willy-nilly. They are not just signing players for the sake of it.
"In a lot of ways for me, it was a privilege and a big honour to even be a player they would be looking at and potentially want at their club. But there's the other side of it too - that I'd be leaving Newcastle and the Knights.
"In the end though, it was just too good an opportunity to pass up."
KIng 26, said he kept the Knights in the loop regarding the Melbourne interest right from the start.
"I was open with the Knights about it the entire time," he said. "But at the time, the club had a lot going on with Connor [Watson's negotiations] and there were pieces of the puzzle they were trying to put into place player-wise.
"I wasn't certain there was going to be anything there for me and in rugby league, things can slip away quickly. Opportunities like these don't come around every day so I had to weigh it up. In the end, it was just something I couldn't pass up.
"What I did think about was probably the regrets I would potentially have down the track if I didn't take the plunge. That weighed heavily as well.
"I think there is a lot of potential for me to grow as a player and a person in that kind of system and I want to see where it takes me. But it was still the toughest decision of my life to leave Newcastle."
King said he can't thank the Knights enough for the opportunity the club has given him.
Since debuting in the NRL back in 2016 when he was juggling footy with a career as a coal-mining electrical apprentice, King has played 74 top grade games and while many of those have come off the bench, he still managed to establish himself as one of the most respected members of the Knights' playing group.
His work away from footy in the community saw him recognised this year as the club's nominee for the NRL's prestigious Ken Stephen Medal for outstanding community service.
"I love Newcastle, I love the club. I'm a kid from Singleton who was given this wonderful opportunity here," he said. "It's why it's been so tough. I've got that much respect for all the boys and the coaching staff. And it's not finished yet.
"Now it's about unfinished business this season. My sole focus is doing whatever I possibly can to finish my time here on the biggest high possible for the boys and the club."
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