How the Newcastle Knights could line up in round one next season

Since full-time sounded on Newcastle's disastrous 2022 campaign, a host of players have parted company with the club, in particular David Klemmer (Wests Tigers), Mitch Barnett (Warriors), Edrick Lee and Anthony Milford (both Dolphins), Chris Randall (Gold Coast), Tex Hoy and Jake Clifford (both Hull FC), Pasami Saulo (Canberra), Jirah Momoisea (Parramatta) and Sauaso Sue (Hull KR).

Reinforcements, however, have arrived in the form of Jackson Hastings (Tigers), Tyson Gamble (Brisbane), Jack Hetherington (Canterbury), Adam Elliott (Canberra) and Greg Marzhew (Gold Coast).

More signings are expected between now and the start of the season. It is understood there are still three vacant spots on the roster.

The Knights are reportedly keen on recruiting Lachlan Miller from Cronulla, although it remains to be seen if the Sharks will release the former Australian rugby union sevens representative from the final season of his contract.

As it stands, the Newcastle Herald has run an eye over the squad and taken an educated guess at how O'Brien's men will line up in their round-one clash against the Warriors.

FULLBACK

The options: Kalyn Ponga, Bailey Hodgson, Tyson Gamble, Dane Gagai, Kurt Mann. English import Hodgson is untested in the NRL, while Gagai and Mann have played custodian at various stages in their careers. Unless the Knights are able to sign a specialist, O'Brien may have little option other than to retain Ponga as his last line of defence.

LEFT WING

The options: Marzhew, Enari Tuala, Hymel Hunt. Replacing Edrick Lee will be no easy task. Marzhew, who scored 15 tries in 25 games for the Titans, would appear the front-runner but Tuala and Hunt are both highly experienced first-graders.

LEFT CENTRE

The options: Bradman Best, Tuala, Hunt, Krystian Mapapalangi, Simi Sasagi. Best has endured a frustrating run of injuries but he is still only 21, and he must be just about due for a breakout year. If he again struggles to stay on the field, 19-year-old Mapapalangi showed in his two games last season that he's ready for more opportunities.

RIGHT CENTRE

The options: Gagai, Tuala, Hunt, Mapapalangi, Simi Sasagi. As a veteran of seven Tests and 22 Origins, Gagai should have a mortgage on his favourite position. Unfortunately he was exposed so many times in defence last season that O'Brien is entitled to consider other options. The reliable and rugged Hunt could be a candidate.

RIGHT WING

The options: Dominic Young, Hunt, Gagai, Tuala. Young is one of the few Knights to emerge from 2022 with his head held high after scoring 14 tries in the NRL, and then another nine in five games for England at the World Cup. Should be a permanent fixture on the right flank.

FIVE-EIGHTH

The options: Ponga, Gamble, Mann, Jackson Hastings, Adam Clune, Phoenix Crossland. The Knights have churned through five-eighths in recent seasons and ideally would like to settle on a long-term No.6. There has been plenty of speculation about Ponga making a permanent switch, but Gamble might be just the type of feisty competitor needed to handle the pivotal role.

HALFBACK

The options: Hastings, Gamble, Clune, Crossland. Hastings shuffled between half, five-eighth and lock for the Tigers last season, but there is little doubt he has been signed as Newcastle's on-field general. In saying that, Clune made 18 NRL appearances last season and didn't let anyone down. It might depend on whether O'Brien prefers two organisers, or a playmaker alongside a running five-eighth.

LOCK

The options: Mann, Elliott, Hetherington, Crossland, Sasagi, Mat Croker. The Knights tried last season to convert Mann into a ball-playing lock, with mixed results. Elliott is a proven workhorse, while Hetherington could provide Newcastle with three towering middle forwards if he starts alongside Daniel and Jacob Saifiti.

RIGHT-SIDE BACK ROW

The options: Tyson Frizell, Brodie Jones, Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Jack Johns, Oryn Keeley. Ironman Frizell virtually picks himself. If for some reason Newcastle's 2022 player of the year is unavailable, both Jones and Fitzgibbon will be looking to bounce back from disappointing seasons.

LEFT-SIDE BACK ROW

The options: Jones, Fitzgibbon, Hetherington, Johns, Keeley. The Knights will be desperately hoping Fitzgibbon can regain the form he showed two or three years ago, before a spate of injuries. The wildcard option would be to pick Hetherington - rated the NRL's fastest forward, according to GPS technology - on the edge, rather than in the middle.

FRONT-ROW

The options: Daniel and Jacob Saifiti, Croker, Leo Thompson, Max Bradbury. The Knights look a tad light-on up front after the departures of Klemmer, Sue, Saulo and Momoisea. There are high hopes in the club for NSW under-19 representative Bradbury. By all accounts an NRL debut might not be too far away.

HOOKER

The options: Jayden Brailey, Mann, Crossland. After the release of Randall to join the Gold Coast, Brailey shapes as a key man for the Knights. If he goes down injured, Newcastle will be relying on a makeshift dummy-half, unless they sign a back-up.

FRONT-ROW

The options: Daniel and Jacob Saifiti, Croker, Thompson, Bradbury. It's taken seven years, but the "Twin Towers" are finally ready to establish themselves as Newcastle's starting front-rowers.

Kalyn Ponga, Greg Marzhew, Bradman Best, Dane Gagai, Dom Young, Tyson Gamble, Jackson Hastings, Jack Hetherington, Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Tyson Frizell, Daniel Saifiti, Jayden Brailey, Jacob Saifiti. Bench: Kurt Mann, Adam Elliott, Mat Croker, Leo Thompson, Brodie Jones (18th man).

READ MORE:

WHAT DO YOU THINK? We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on the Newcastle Herald website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. Sign up for a subscription here.