KNIGHTS prop David Klemmer was sent off in the last minute of the game as South Sydney dealt Newcastle's already-miniscule finals hopes an apparently mortal blow with a 40-28 victory at McDonald Jones Stadium on Friday night.
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Klemmer was marched by referee Todd Smith for apparently using his elbow on a tackled opponent, prompting a melee.
The former Test forward's dismissal capped off a bleak night for Newcastle.
After last week's 38-12 win against Gold Coast, the Knights crashed to earth with a thud against the in-form Rabbitohs.
The loss left Newcastle needing to win at least seven of their remaining eight fixtures to have any hope of reaching the play-offs. It was the Knights' sixth loss in their past seven games at home, and a crowd of 18,621 headed home pondering a first-half implosion.
The Knights found themselves 24-16 in arrears after a roller-coaster ride in the first 40 minutes.
Souths drew first blood when five-eighth Cody Walker scored in the 10th minute, but Newcastle hit back with tries by winger Dominic Young, prop David Klemmer and centre Bradman Best scored between the 14th and 25th minutes.
Klemmer's try, when he scooped up a loose ball that was batted back by winger Edrick Lee after a crossfield kick, was his first in 75 NRL games for the Knights.
But with Newcastle leading 16-6 and clearly on on the front foot, the momentum swung dramatically in the 29th minute when Souths skipper Latrell Mitchell produced a short goal-line drop-out and the Rabbitohs regained possession.
Within a minute, they had gone from one end of the field to the other and winger Richard Kennar scored in the corner. Three minutes later, Kennar was in again, then two minutes before half-time, Walker snaffled an intercept and raced 80 metres to score untouched.
In the space of eight minutes, the shell-shocked home side had conceded 18 points.
Kennar made it a hat-trick in the 42nd minute, and after further tries by Tevita Tatola and Jaxson Paulo, Souths led 38-16 with 18 minutes to play. Newcastle hit back with tries by Lee and Mitch Barnett but Souths steadied to keep them at bay for the final 11 minutes.
Meanwhile, the Knights announced on Friday that club legend Andrew Johns had extended his tenure as a coaching consultant for the 2023 season.
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