Cornerpost Mortem: Newcastle Knights – new coach brings hope however short-term future appears grim

Within the first of a collection reviewing every NRL workforce’s season and looking forward to their prospects for 2026, the one means is up for picket spooners Newcastle.

What doesn’t kill you’ll be able to solely make you stronger.

If Justin Holbrook can come out the opposite facet of a Gold Coast Titans stint and nonetheless have the wherewithal to be an NRL coach once more, then he’s nicely geared up for the gargantuan problem that awaits in Newcastle.

There are solely 17 – quickly to be 18 and perhaps 19 – gigs within the NRL and a handful of them appear to have coaches locked in on digital lifetime offers.

So it’s robust for potential head coaches to be too picky on the subject of the uncommon spots that open up.

Holbrook has greater than paid his dues after slicing his enamel at St Helens, doing an inexpensive job with Gold Coast and holding himself on the NRL coalface after the Titans punted him in 2023 with an assistant’s function on the Roosters and the Kangaroos, and the Papua New Guinea Take a look at function.

The 49-year-old former journeyman halfback received the race to exchange Adam O’Brien forward of Knights assistants Blake Inexperienced and Brian McDermott, and St George Illawarra deputy Dean Younger.

Heading up the search was Newcastle’s longest-serving coach, Michael Hagan, who guided them to their most up-to-date title – their 2001 odyssey through which they upset Parramatta in one of many largest boilovers in premiership historical past.

Hagan, who was joined by membership chair Geoff Coburn, director Tony Worth, CEO Peter Parr and director of soccer Chris James in selecting the brand new coach, was assured Holbrook had the expertise and the nous to deal with what might be an unlimited job of turning the workforce’s fortunes round.

“It was fairly a radical course of, all of them introduced nicely,” Hagan stated. “Justin had that bit extra expertise.

Former Titans coach Justin Holbrook. (Picture by Chris Hyde/Getty Photographs)

“It’s onerous to clarify in the event you haven’t been in that scorching seat. He’s executed that on the Titans and St Helens in order that gave him just a little little bit of a bonus.”

Hagan stated he didn’t seek the advice of the membership’s outdated boys like Andrew Johns, Matt Gidley and Paul Harragon from their premiership-winning period across the flip of the century however he noticed his function as performing as their consultant on the choice panel to make sure the brand new coach understood the Knights’ ethos.

“I like his positivity and his manner was actually robust, that are two issues it’s essential to be a head coach over a protracted interval.”

The important thing to Holbrook’s mission might be figuring out the optimum backbone mixture and sticking with it.

O’Brien churned by a large number of gamers, notably within the halves, in the hunt for an efficient quartet throughout his six years on the helm however other than their late-season surge in 2023 to complete fifth, sustained success eluded him.

Kiwi worldwide Dylan Brown begins his tenure subsequent season as a Knight on a record-breaking $13 million decade-long deal.

Whichever means you have a look at it, the mammoth contract is an especially dangerous play by the Knights, a membership with a proud custom of constructing from inside moderately than splashing the money on high-priced recruits.

Newcastle’s bona fide star, Kalyn Ponga, has but once more put to mattress rumours a couple of change to rugby union in New Zealand however the ongoing circus surrounding the veracity of his dedication to the membership continues to gnaw away at their supporters. 

Kalyn Ponga and Fletcher Sharpe. (Picture by Hannah Peters/Getty Photographs)

With Ponga locked in at fullback, Holbrook wants to decide on between Brown, final season’s breakout star Fletcher Sharpe and Roosters recruit Sandon Smith to be his on-field generals.

The issue he wants to resolve as rapidly as doable is that Brown and Sharpe are each suited to five-eighth. 

Brown seemed like an Eel out of water when he crammed in for Parra within the No.7 jersey whereas Sharpe is but to play there in his first two seasons after making a promising change from the wing to five-eighth this 12 months.

That might depart the door open for Smith to lock within the halfback function because the chief playmaker however the Knights didn’t pay Brown all that cash to play anyplace other than a key function within the halves and Sharpe can be wasted if shunted out to the wing.

The opposite possibility could possibly be to make use of Smith at hooker to see if a Brown-Sharpe combo may work in he halves with Phoenix Crossland resuming the lock function that he crammed late within the season.

With expectations so low, Holbrook can afford to experiment within the early rounds of 2026 however then follow the mixture that stands out.

However he can’t repeat O’Brien’s mistake of regularly shuffling gamers round within the hope of hanging it fortunate.

“It’s only a matter of getting the roles proper,” Hagan stated. 

Dylan Brown. (Picture by Scott Gardiner/Getty Photographs)

“There’s some fairly good strikepower there but it surely may take a while to get these understandings and people combos.”

Jackson Hastings is out the door after an sad last season on the membership after they couldn’t offload his profitable deal and now the Knights discover themselves in the identical situation with Tyson Gamble and Jack Cogger, who’re underneath contract for subsequent season however are thought-about surplus to necessities.

The Knights have shed one other playmaker with mid-season recruit Jake Arthur winging his method to Hull FC whereas his brother Matt is staying put to be within the combine for the No.9 jersey or bench utility function.

Kiwi prop Leo Thompson is off to the Bulldogs, Jayden Brailey has joined the Raiders and Kai Pearce-Paul is heading to the Wests Tigers whereas veteran forwards Adam Elliott and Jack Hetherington are and not using a deal for 2026.

Aside from Brown, Newcastle have added Dolphins trio Peter Hola, Asu Kepaoa and Harrison Graham in addition to Raiders forwards Pasami Saulo and Trey Mooney.

Hagan stated one other feather in Holbrook’s cap is that he understands the Hunter Valley area from his time on the Knights coming by the grades as a participant, together with a few seasons as Andrew Johns’ understudy in 1999-200.

The Knights’ power has all the time been its native expertise and that might be a serious a part of Holbrook’s mission.

“That’s one other essential requirement,” Hagan added. 

“It’s been a really robust season and the membership’s at a low ebb. He’s been in and round excessive degree gamers and the Knights have gotten some high-calibre gamers both already right here or coming and I reckon he’s acquired understanding of how that may all match collectively.

“With pathways and junior growth, there’s going to be a stronger concentrate on that over time and Justin might be a part of that catchment of attempting to usher in younger expertise and develop them into high quality first-grade gamers.

“I’m enthusiastic about how that may look down the monitor.”