# 2016 Newcastle Knights season

The 2016 Newcastle Knights season was the 29th in the club's history. Coached by Nathan Brown and co-captained by Trent Hodkinson, Tariq Sims and Jeremy Smith, they competed in the NRL's 2016 Telstra Premiership, finishing the regular season in 16th place (out of 16). In the pre-season the Knights competed in the 2016 Auckland Nines tournament, reaching the quarter-finals. Mid-way through the 2016 season the team had only one member selected to play in the 2016 State of Origin series. Notably, all four Mata'utia brothers, Chanel, Pat, Peter and Sione featured in the NRL team for the Knights throughout the year.

## Milestones

* Round 1: David Bhana made his NRL debut for the club.
* Round 1: Jaelen Feeney made his NRL debut for the club.
* Round 1: Trent Hodkinson made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, captained his 1st game for the club and kicked his 1st goal for the club.
* Round 1: Pat Mata'utia made his NRL debut for the club and scored his 1st career try.
* Round 1: Pauli Pauli made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Parramatta Eels.
* Round 1: Daniel Saifiti made his NRL debut for the club and scored his 1st career try.
* Round 1: Jacob Saifiti made his NRL debut for the club.
* Round 1: Jeremy Smith captained his 1st game for the club.
* Round 3: Cory Denniss made his NRL debut for the club and scored his 1st career try.
* Round 3: Sam Mataora scored his 1st try for the club.
* Round 3: Jarrod Mullen played his 200th game for the club, which was also his 200th career game.
* Round 3: Mickey Paea made his debut for the club, after previously playing for Hull FC.
* Round 5: Jacob Saifiti scored his 1st career try.
* Round 6: The Knights won their 200th game at Hunter Stadium.
* Round 6: Will Pearsall made his NRL debut for the club.
* Round 6: Tariq Sims captained his 1st game for the club.
* Round 7: Josh King made his NRL debut for the club.
* Round 7: Jack Stockwell played his 50th career game.
* Round 8: Sam Mataora played his 50th career game.
* Round 8: Jeremy Smith played his 200th career game.
* Round 9: Brock Lamb made his NRL debut for the club.
* Round 10: Jack Cogger made his NRL debut for the club.
* Round 11: Dane Gagai played his 100th career game.
* Round 11: Trent Hodkinson scored his 1st try for the club.
* Round 12: Pauli Pauli scored his 1st try for the club.
* Round 13: Lachlan Fitzgibbon scored his 1st career try.
* Round 14: Mitchell Barnett made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Canberra Raiders.
* Round 14: Brendan Elliot made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Sydney Roosters, and scored his 1st try for the club.
* Round 16: Mitchell Barnett scored his 1st career try.
* Round 16: Trent Hodkinson scored his 500th career point.
* Round 17: Trent Hodkinson kicked his 1st field goal for the club.
* Round 21: David Bhana scored his 1st career try.
* Round 21: Dane Gagai played his 100th game for the club.
* Round 22: The Knights lost their 14th game in a row, breaking their 2005 season record of 13 losses in a row.
* Round 24: Peter Mata'utia played his 50th career game.
* Round 25: Dylan Phythian made his NRL debut for the club and scored his 1st career try.
* Round 25: Jeremy Smith kicked his 1st goal for the club.

## Transfers and Re-signings
### Gains

| Player | Previous Club | Length |
| Chris Adams | Lakes United | 2016 |
| Uiti Baker | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | 2016 |
| Mitchell Barnett | Canberra Raiders | 2017 |
| David Bhana | New Zealand Warriors | 2017 |
| Nathan Brown (head coach) | Melbourne Storm | 2018 |
| Brendan Elliot | Sydney Roosters | 2017 |
| Krys Freeman | Norths Devils | 2016 |
| Trent Hodkinson | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 2018 |
| Todd Lowrie (NYC coach) | Brisbane Broncos | 2016 |
| Peter Mata'utia | St. George Illawarra Dragons | 2017 |
| Mickey Paea | Hull F.C. | 2017 |
| Pauli Pauli | Parramatta Eels | 2017 |
| Will Pearsall | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | 2017 |
| Michael Potter (assistant coach) | Fiji under-20s team | 2016 |
| Tekina Vailea | Illawarra Cutters | 2016 |

### Losses

| Player | Club |
| Adam Clydsdale | Canberra Raiders |
| David Fa'alogo | Ipswich Jets |
| Marvin Filipo | Cessnock Goannas |
| Jake Finn | Western Suburbs Rosellas |
| Kurt Gidley | Warrington Wolves |
| Kerrod Holland | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs |
| Chris Houston | Widnes Vikings |
| Sam Keenan | Western Suburbs Rosellas |
| Joseph Leilua | Canberra Raiders |
| James McManus | Retirement |
| Clint Newton | Retirement |
| Jah Pakau | Released |
| Pride Petterson-Robati | Casey Warriors |
| Chad Redman | Gold Coast Titans |
| Tyrone Roberts | Gold Coast Titans |
| Craig Sandercock (assistant coach) | Wests Tigers |
| Beau Scott | Parramatta Eels |
| Damian Sironen | Illawarra Cutters |
| Rick Stone (head coach) | Contract terminated |
| Tuiala Togiatasi | Tweed Heads Seagulls |
| Honeti Tuha | Parramatta Eels |
| Carlos Tuimavave | Hull F.C. |
| Noel Underwood | Townsville Blackhawks |
| Paterika Vaivai | Burleigh Bears |

### Promoted juniors

| Player | Junior side |
| Cory Denniss | Knights National Youth Competition |
| Tama Koopu | Knights New South Wales Cup |
| Braden Robson | Knights National Youth Competition |
| Daniel Saifiti | Knights National Youth Competition |
| Jacob Saifiti | Knights National Youth Competition |
| Bradie Smith | Knights National Youth Competition |
| Ken Tofilau | Knights National Youth Competition |

### Change of role

| Player/Coach | New role |
| Danny Buderus (interim head coach) | Knights assistant coach |
| James Elias | Knights second-tier squad |
| Jacob Gagai | Knights second-tier squad |
| Troy Pezet (NYC coach) | Knights Elite Pathways Recruitment Manager |
| Michael Steele | Knights second-tier squad |

### Re-signings

| Player/Coach | Re-signed to |
| Josh King | 2018 |
| Brock Lamb | 2018 |
| Dylan Phythian | 2017 |
| Nathan Ross | 2018 |
| Daniel Saifiti | 2018 |
| Jacob Saifiti | 2018 |

### Player contract situations

| 2016 (left) | 2017 | 2018 |
| Chris Adams | Mitchell Barnett | Jack Cogger |
| Uiti Baker | David Bhana | Trent Hodkinson |
| Bryce Donovan | Cory Denniss | Josh King |
| Krys Freeman | Brendan Elliot | Brock Lamb |
| Tama Koopu | Jaelen Feeney | Danny Levi |
| Todd Lowrie | Lachlan Fitzgibbon | Chanel Mata'utia |
| Robbie Rochow | Dane Gagai | Pat Mata'utia |
| Tariq Sims | Jake Mamo | Sione Mata'utia |
| Jeremy Smith | Sam Mataora | Jarrod Mullen |
| Kade Snowden | Peter Mata'utia | Nathan Ross |
| Joseph Tapine | Mickey Paea | Daniel Saifiti |
| James Taylor | Pauli Pauli | Jacob Saifiti |
| Ken Tofilau | Will Pearsall | |
| Akuila Uate | Dylan Phythian | |
| Tekina Vailea | Tyler Randell | |
| | Braden Robson | |
| | Korbin Sims | |
| | Bradie Smith | |
| | Jack Stockwell | |
| | Luke Yates | |

## Ladder

2016 NRL seasonvte :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
| 1 | Melbourne Storm | 24 | 19 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 563 | 302 | +261 | 42 |
| 2 | Canberra Raiders | 24 | 17 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 688 | 456 | +232 | 39 |
| 3 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks (P) | 24 | 17 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 580 | 404 | +176 | 39 |
| 4 | North Queensland Cowboys | 24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 584 | 355 | +229 | 34 |
| 5 | Brisbane Broncos | 24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 554 | 434 | +120 | 34 |
| 6 | Penrith Panthers | 24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 563 | 463 | +100 | 32 |
| 7 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 506 | 448 | +58 | 32 |
| 8 | Gold Coast Titans | 24 | 11 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 508 | 497 | +11 | 27 |
| 9 | Wests Tigers | 24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 499 | 607 | −108 | 26 |
| 10 | New Zealand Warriors | 24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 513 | 601 | −88 | 24 |
| 11 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | 24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 341 | 538 | −197 | 24 |
| 12 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 473 | 549 | −76 | 22 |
| 13 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | 24 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 454 | 563 | −109 | 20 |
| 14 | Parramatta Eels | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 298 | 324 | −26 | 18$^1$ |
| 15 | Sydney Roosters | 24 | 6 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 443 | 576 | −133 | 16 |
| 16 | Newcastle Knights | 24 | 1 | 1 | 22 | 2 | 305 | 800 | −495 | 7 |
$^1$ Parramatta were deducted 12 competition points and their for/against tally accumulated between rounds 1-9 for gross long-term salary cap breaches.

## Jerseys and sponsors

In 2016, the Knights' jerseys were made by ISC and their major sponsor was Newpave Asphalt.
| 2016 Home Jersey | 2016 Away Jersey | 2016 ANZAC Jersey | 2016 NSW Mining Jersey |

## Fixtures
### Auckland Nines

Squad: 1. Jake Mamo 2. Nathan Ross 3. Jaelen Feeney 4. Akuila Uate 6. Brock Lamb 7. Will Pearsall 8. Pauli Pauli 9. Tyler Randell (c) 10. Daniel Saifiti 11. Korbin Sims 12. Robbie Rochow (c) 13. Jacob Saifiti 14. Sione Mata'utia 15. Joseph Tapine 16. Tariq Sims (c) 17. Chanel Mata'utia 18. Danny Levi 19. Pat Mata'utia
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Score | Tries | Drop Goal Conversions |
| Saturday, 6 February | Auckland Nines Game 3 | North Queensland Cowboys | Eden Park | 12-28 | B.Lamb, D.Levi | B.Lamb (2/2) |
| Saturday, 6 February | Auckland Nines Game 11 | Penrith Panthers | Eden Park | 15-14 | J.Mamo (2), C.Mata'utia | D.Levi (1/3) |
| Sunday, 7 February | Auckland Nines Game 19 | Wests Tigers | Eden Park | 21-16 | D.Levi, R.Rochow, A.Uate, J.Mamo | B.Lamb (2/4) |
| Sunday, 7 February | Auckland Nines Quarter-Final 1 | Parramatta Eels | Eden Park | 8-12 | J.Mamo, J.Feeney | B.Lamb (0/2) |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw ||||||||

### Pre-season trials

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance |
| Saturday, 20 February | Trial 1 | Canberra Raiders | Wade Park | 28 – 34 | J.Feeney, L.Fitzgibbon, A.Uate, C.Mata'utia, B.Lamb | T.Hodkinson (3/3), T.Randell (0/1), B.Lamb (1/1) | |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw ||||||||

### Regular season

Source:
* FG – Field Goal
* GP – Golden Point extra time
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Score | Tries | Goals/Field Goals | Attendance |
| 3 March | 1 | Gold Coast Titans | Cbus Super Stadium, Robina | Lost | 12-30 | Pat Mata'utia, Daniel Saifiti | Trent Hodkinson (2/2) | 8,313 |
| 12 March | 2 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | ANZ Stadium, Sydney | Lost | 6-48 | Nathan Ross | Trent Hodkinson (1/1) | 13,364 |
| 19 March | 3 | Canberra Raiders | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Draw | 24-24 (GP) | Cory Denniss 2, Pat Mata'utia, Sam Mataora | Trent Hodkinson (4/4) | 13,745 |
| 28 March | 4 | New Zealand Warriors | Mt. Smart Stadium, Auckland | Lost | 18-40 | Sam Mataora, Dane Gagai, Nathan Ross | Trent Hodkinson (3/3) | 13,895 |
| 2 April | 5 | Melbourne Storm | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Lost | 14-18 | Jacob Saifiti, Korbin Sims | Trent Hodkinson (3/3) | 11,443 |
| 10 April | 6 | Wests Tigers | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Won | 18-16 | Akuila Uate, Korbin Sims, Nathan Ross | Trent Hodkinson (3/3) | 21,653 |
| 16 April | 7 | Brisbane Broncos | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane | Lost | 0-53 | | | 30,394 |
| 25 April | 8 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Lost | 10-26 | Tyler Randell, Nathan Ross | Trent Hodkinson (1/2) | 19,072 |
| 30 April | 9 | Sydney Roosters | Allianz Stadium, Sydney | Lost | 0-38 | | | 9,502 |
| 15 May | 10 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Lost | 0-62 | | | 16,150 |
| 21 May | 11 | Wests Tigers | Campbelltown Stadium, Campbelltown | Lost | 12-20 | Trent Hodkinson, Dane Gagai | Trent Hodkinson (2/2) | 8,658 |
| 30 May | 12 | Parramatta Eels | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Lost | 18-20 | Sione Mata'utia, Pauli Pauli, Nathan Ross | Trent Hodkinson (3/5) | 12,856 |
| 4 June | 13 | North Queensland Cowboys | 1300SMILES Stadium, Townsville | Lost | 16-46 | Cory Denniss, Jake Mamo, Lachlan Fitzgibbon | Trent Hodkinson (2/3) | 14,651 |
| 11 June | 14 | New Zealand Warriors | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Lost | 14-50 | Sione Mata'utia, Brendan Elliot | Trent Hodkinson (3/3) | 12,222 |
| 16-20 June | 15 | Bye | | | | | | |
| 25 June | 16 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Lost | 18-30 | Mitchell Barnett, Sione Mata'utia, Nathan Ross | Trent Hodkinson (3/3) | 13,777 |
| 3 July | 17 | Canberra Raiders | GIO Stadium, Canberra | Lost | 25-29 (GP) | Sione Mata'utia, Korbin Sims, Jake Mamo, Peter Mata'utia | Trent Hodkinson (4/5) (1FG) | 9,731 |
| 7-11 July | 18 | Bye | | | | | | |
| 17 July | 19 | Melbourne Storm | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Lost | 16-20 | Jake Mamo 2, Brendan Elliot | Trent Hodkinson (2/3) | 10,748 |
| 24 July | 20 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Southern Cross Group Stadium, Cronulla | Lost | 4-36 | Nathan Ross | Trent Hodkinson (0/1) | 16,882 |
| 31 July | 21 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Brookvale Oval, Manly | Lost | 16-36 | Peter Mata'utia, David Bhana, Brendan Elliot | Trent Hodkinson (2/3) | 11,222 |
| 6 August | 22 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Lost | 14-28 | Brendan Elliot 2 | Trent Hodkinson (3/3) | 13,318 |
| 14 August | 23 | Penrith Panthers | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Lost | 6-42 | Brendan Elliot | Trent Hodkinson (1/1) | 13,771 |
| 20 August | 24 | Gold Coast Titans | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Lost | 6-26 | Nathan Ross | Trent Hodkinson (1/1) | 10,960 |
| 28 August | 25 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle | Lost | 12-34 | Dylan Phythian, Jake Mamo | Trent Hodkinson (1/1), Jeremy Smith (1/1) | 15,212 |
| 3 September | 26 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Jubilee Oval, Kogarah | Lost | 26-28 | Mitchell Barnett, Dane Gagai, Peter Mata'utia, Nathan Ross, Jacob Saifiti | Trent Hodkinson (3/5) | 8,726 |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw |||||||||

## Statistics

| Name | Appearances | Tries | Goals | Field Goals | Points | Captain | Age |
| Chris Adams | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 |
| Mitchell Barnett | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 22 |
| David Bhana | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 23 |
| Jack Cogger | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 |
| Cory Denniss | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 19 |
| Brendan Elliot | 11 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 22 |
| Jaelen Feeney | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| Lachlan Fitzgibbon | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 22 |
| Dane Gagai | 22 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 25 |
| Trent Hodkinson | 23 | 1 | 47 | 1 | 99 | 23 | 28 |
| Josh King | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Brock Lamb | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 |
| Danny Levi | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Jake Mamo | 13 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 22 |
| Sam Mataora | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 26 |
| Chanel Mata'utia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| Pat Mata'utia | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 23 |
| Peter Mata'utia | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 26 |
| Sione Mata'utia | 16 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 20 |
| Jarrod Mullen | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 |
| Mickey Paea | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 |
| Pauli Pauli | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 22 |
| Will Pearsall | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Dylan Phythian | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 21 |
| Tyler Randell | 18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 24 |
| Robbie Rochow | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 |
| Nathan Ross | 19 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 0 | 28 |
| Daniel Saifiti | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 20 |
| Jacob Saifiti | 18 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 20 |
| Korbin Sims | 22 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 24 |
| Tariq Sims | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 26 |
| Jeremy Smith | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 21 | 36 |
| Kade Snowden | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 |
| Jack Stockwell | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| Akuila Uate | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 29 |
| Totals | 24 | 52 | 48 | 1 | 305 | - | Average: 24 |
35 players used.
Source:

## Representative honours

The following players appeared in a representative match in 2016.
Australian Schoolboys
* Brodie Jones
* Pasami Saulo
Fiji
* Michael Potter (coach)
* Daniel Saifiti
* Korbin Sims
* Akuila Uate
Indigenous All Stars
* Dane Gagai
Junior Kiwis
* Ken Tofilau
Malta
* Ben Stone
* Sam Stone
New South Wales Country
* Tariq Sims
New South Wales Residents
* Matt Lantry (assistant coach)
New South Wales under-16s
* Tom Baker
* Phoenix Crossland
* Brock Gardner
* Jock Madden
New South Wales under-18s
* Brodie Jones
* Pasami Saulo
* Tom Starling
New South Wales under-20s
* Jack Cogger
* Cory Denniss
New Zealand
* Danny Levi (19th man)
Tonga
* Mickey Paea (18th man)
World All Stars
* Trent Hodkinson (squad member)
* Jeremy Smith

## Individual honours
### Teams and squads

Emerging Blues Camp
* Tariq Sims
New South Wales Under-20s Origin Pathways Camp
* Jack Cogger
Queensland Academy of Sport Emerging Origin Squad
* Korbin Sims

### Newcastle Knights awards
#### Player of the Year

* National Rugby League (NRL) Player of the Year: Dane Gagai
* Intrust Super Premiership NSW Player of the Year: Luke Yates
* National Youth Competition (NYC) Player of the Year: Nick Meaney

#### Players' Player

* National Rugby League (NRL) Players' Player: Sione Mata'utia
* Intrust Super Premiership NSW Players' Player: Ken Tofilau
* National Youth Competition (NYC) Players' Player: Nick Meaney

#### Coach's Award

* National Rugby League (NRL) Coach's Award: Nathan Ross
* Intrust Super Premiership NSW Coach's Award: Uiti Baker
* National Youth Competition (NYC) Coach's Award: Joe Morris

#### Brian Carlson Club-Andrew Johns Medal

* Pasami Saulo