# 2017 Newcastle Knights season

The 2017 Newcastle Knights season was the 30th in the club's history. Coached by Nathan Brown and captained by Trent Hodkinson, before being replaced by Sione Mata'utia and Jamie Buhrer in the captaincy role, they competed in the NRL's 2017 Telstra Premiership, finishing the regular season in 16th place (out of 16).

## Milestones

* Round 1: Jamie Buhrer made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles.
* Round 1: Ken Sio made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Hull Kingston Rovers.
* Round 1: Josh Starling made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles.
* Round 1: Jack Stockwell scored his 1st try for the club.
* Round 1: Sam Stone made his NRL debut for the club.
* Round 1: Luke Yates made his NRL debut for the club.
* Round 2: Sam Stone scored his 1st career try.
* Round 3: Brock Lamb kicked his 1st career goal.
* Round 3: Ken Sio scored his 1st try for the club.
* Round 4: Joe Wardle made his NRL debut for the club, after previously playing for the Huddersfield Giants.
* Round 5: Jacob Gagan made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks and scored his 1st try for the club.
* Round 5: Sione Mata'utia played his 50th career game.
* Round 5: Anthony Tupou made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks.
* Round 5: Joe Wardle scored his 1st try for the club.
* Round 8: Sione Mata'utia captained his 1st game for the club.
* Round 10: Brock Lamb scored his 1st career try.
* Round 14: Jaelen Feeney scored his 1st career try.
* Round 18: Jamie Buhrer captained his 1st game for the club.
* Round 20: Trent Hodkinson played his 150th career game.
* Round 20: Shaun Kenny-Dowall made his debut for the club, after previously playing for the Sydney Roosters, and scored his 1st try for the club.
* Round 25: Jamie Buhrer scored his 1st try for the club.

## Transfers and Re-signings
### Gains

| Player/Coach | Previous Club | Length |
| Jamie Buhrer | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | 2018 |
| Thomas Cronan | Canberra Raiders | 2017 |
| Jacob Gagan | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | 2017 |
| Shaun Kenny-Dowall | Sydney Roosters | 2019 |
| Rory Kostjasyn | North Queensland Cowboys | 2018 |
| Ken Sio | Hull Kingston Rovers | 2018 |
| Josh Starling | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | 2017 |
| Anthony Tupou | Wakefield Trinity Wildcats | 2017 |
| Joe Wardle | Huddersfield Giants | 2019 |
| Simon Woolford (ISP NSW coach) | Queanbeyan Blues | 2017 |
| Kurt Wrigley (assistant coach) | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 2017 |

### Losses

| Player/Coach | Club |
| Chris Adams | Lakes United |
| Uiti Baker | Western Suburbs Rosellas |
| Danny Buderus (assistant coach) | Released |
| Krys Freeman | Central Queensland Capras |
| Tama Koopu | Norths Devils |
| Matt Lantry (ISP NSW coach) | Western Suburbs Rosellas |
| Todd Lowrie | Retirement |
| Robbie Rochow | South Sydney Rabbitohs |
| Tariq Sims | St. George Illawarra Dragons |
| Jeremy Smith | Retirement |
| Kade Snowden | Retirement |
| Joseph Tapine | Canberra Raiders |
| James Taylor | South Newcastle Lions |
| Ken Tofilau | Central Queensland Capras |
| Akuila Uate | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles |
| Tekina Vailea | Eastern Suburbs Tigers |

### Promoted juniors

| Player | Junior side |
| Tyrone Amey | Knights Intrust Super Premiership NSW |
| Tom Hughes | Knights Intrust Super Premiership NSW |
| Brodie Jones | Knights National Youth Competition |
| Nick Meaney | Knights National Youth Competition |
| Joe Morris | Knights Intrust Super Premiership NSW |
| Pasami Saulo | Knights National Youth Competition |
| Tom Starling | Knights National Youth Competition |
| Sam Stone | Knights National Youth Competition |

### Change of role

| Player/Coach | New role |
| Bryce Donovan | Knights second-tier squad |

### Re-signings

| Player/Coach | Re-signed to |
| Mitchell Barnett | 2020 |
| Cory Denniss | 2018 |
| Lachlan Fitzgibbon | 2019 |
| Tom Hughes | 2018 |
| Danny Levi | 2020 |
| Nick Meaney | 2018 |
| Dylan Phythian | 2018 |
| Nathan Ross | 2020 |
| Daniel Saifiti | 2020 |
| Jacob Saifiti | 2020 |
| Tom Starling | 2018 |
| Sam Stone | 2018 |
| Luke Yates | 2018 |

### Player contract situations

| 2017 (left) | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
| David Bhana | Tyrone Amey | Lachlan Fitzgibbon | Mitchell Barnett |
| Brendan Elliot | Jamie Buhrer | Shaun Kenny-Dowall | Danny Levi |
| Jaelen Feeney | Jack Cogger | | Nathan Ross |
| Dane Gagai | Thomas Cronan | | Daniel Saifiti |
| Jacob Gagan | Cory Denniss | | Jacob Saifiti |
| Rory Kostjasyn | Trent Hodkinson | | |
| Jake Mamo | Tom Hughes | | |
| Sam Mataora | Brodie Jones | | |
| Peter Mata'utia | Josh King | | |
| Joe Morris | Brock Lamb | | |
| Jarrod Mullen | Chanel Mata'utia | | |
| Mickey Paea | Pat Mata'utia | | |
| Pauli Pauli | Sione Mata'utia | | |
| Will Pearsall | Nick Meaney | | |
| Tyler Randell | Dylan Phythian | | |
| Braden Robson | Pasami Saulo | | |
| Korbin Sims | Ken Sio | | |
| Bradie Smith | Tom Starling | | |
| Josh Starling | Sam Stone | | |
| Jack Stockwell | Luke Yates | | |
| Anthony Tupou | | | |
| Joe Wardle | | | |

## Ladder

2017 NRL seasonvte :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
| 1 | Melbourne Storm (P) | 24 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 633 | 336 | +297 | 44 |
| 2 | Sydney Roosters | 24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 500 | 428 | +72 | 38 |
| 3 | Brisbane Broncos | 24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 597 | 433 | +164 | 36 |
| 4 | Parramatta Eels | 24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 496 | 457 | +39 | 36 |
| 5 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | 24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 476 | 407 | +69 | 34 |
| 6 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | 24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 552 | 512 | +40 | 32 |
| 7 | Penrith Panthers | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 504 | 459 | +45 | 30 |
| 8 | North Queensland Cowboys | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 467 | 443 | +24 | 30 |
| 9 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | 24 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 533 | 450 | +83 | 28 |
| 10 | Canberra Raiders | 24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 558 | 497 | +61 | 26 |
| 11 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 360 | 455 | −95 | 24 |
| 12 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 464 | 564 | −100 | 22 |
| 13 | New Zealand Warriors | 24 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 444 | 575 | −131 | 18 |
| 14 | Wests Tigers | 24 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 413 | 571 | −158 | 18 |
| 15 | Gold Coast Titans | 24 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 448 | 638 | −190 | 18 |
| 16 | Newcastle Knights | 24 | 5 | 0 | 19 | 2 | 428 | 648 | −220 | 14 |

## Jerseys and sponsors

In 2017, the Knights' jerseys were made by ISC and their major sponsor was nib Health Funds.
| 2017 Home Jersey | 2017 Away Jersey | 2017 Indigenous Jersey | 2017 ISC Marvel Heroes Iron Patriot Jersey | 2017 NSW Mining Jersey |

## Fixtures
### Auckland Nines

Squad: 1. Peter Mata'utia 2. Ken Sio 3. Brendan Elliot 4. Nathan Ross 5. Cory Denniss 6. Brock Lamb 7. Jaelen Feeney 8. Daniel Saifiti 9. Danny Levi 10. Jacob Saifiti 11. Mitchell Barnett 12. Jamie Buhrer (c) 13. Luke Yates 14. Tyler Randell 15. Jack Stockwell 16. Sam Stone 17. Lachlan Fitzgibbon 18. Nick Meaney 19. Sione Mata'utia (Emergency Player)
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Score | Tries | Drop Goal Conversions |
| Saturday, 4 February | Auckland Nines Game 5 | Wests Tigers | Eden Park | 18-10 | K.Sio, N.Ross, S.Stone, M.Barnett | B.Lamb (1/4) |
| Saturday, 4 February | Auckland Nines Game 13 | Brisbane Broncos | Eden Park | 8-21 | D.Levi, P.Mata'utia | |
| Sunday, 5 February | Auckland Nines Game 22 | Melbourne Storm | Eden Park | 10-20 | B.Lamb, C.Denniss | T.Randell (1/1) |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw ||||||||

### Preseason trials

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance |
| Saturday, 18 February | Trial 1 | Canberra Raiders | Seiffert Oval | 44 – 0 | D.Levi, P.Mata'utia, J.Buhrer, S.Mata'utia, T.Hodkinson, B.Elliot, C.Mata'utia, K.Sio | T.Hodkinson (4/5), B.Lamb (2/3) | 6,350 |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw ||||||||

### Regular season

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance |
| Sunday 5 March | 1 | New Zealand Warriors | Mt Smart Stadium | 22 – 26 | N. Ross (2), P. Mata'utia, J. Stockwell | T. Hodkinson (3/5) | 13,712 |
| Saturday 11 March | 2 | Gold Coast Titans | McDonald Jones Stadium | 34 – 26 | N. Ross (2), B. Elliot, P. Mata'utia, J. Stockwell, S. Stone | T. Hodkinson (5/6) | 12,869 |
| Saturday 18 March | 3 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | McDonald Jones Stadium | 18 – 24 | T. Hodkinson, P. Mata'utia, K. Sio | T. Hodkinson (2/3), B. Lamb (1/1) | 15,212 |
| Friday 24 March | 4 | Penrith Panthers | Pepper Stadium | 0 – 40 | | | 10,567 |
| Saturday 1 April | 5 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Southern Cross Stadium | 18 – 19 | Brendan Elliot, Jacob Gagan, Joe Wardle | Trent Hodkinson (3/3) | 12,838 |
| Friday 7 April | 6 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | McDonald Jones Stadium | 12 – 22 | Dane Gagai, Nathan Ross | Trent Hodkinson (2/3) | 16,929 |
| Friday 14 April | 7 | Sydney Roosters | McDonald Jones Stadium | 6 – 24 | Ken Sio | Trent Hodkinson (1/1) | 21,412 |
| Saturday 22 April | 8 | North Queensland Cowboys | 1300SMILES Stadium | 12 – 24 | Brendan Elliot, Nathan Ross | Brock Lamb (2/2) | 13,878 |
| Saturday 29 April | 9 | Gold Coast Titans | Cbus Super Stadium | 8 – 38 | Sam Stone | Brock Lamb (2/2) | 10,511 |
| Sunday 14 May | 10 | Canberra Raiders | McDonald Jones Stadium | 34 – 20 | Sione Mata'utia (2), Brock Lamb, Peter Mata'utia, Nathan Ross, Joe Wardle | Brock Lamb (5/7) | 10,997 |
| Sunday 21 May | 11 | Penrith Panthers | McDonald Jones Stadium | 20 – 30 | Brock Lamb, Peter Mata'utia, Daniel Saifiti | Brock Lamb (4/4) | 13,319 |
| | 12 | BYE | | | | | |
| Friday 2 June | 13 | Melbourne Storm | AAMI Park | 12 – 40 | Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Ken Sio | Brock Lamb (2/2) | 11,070 |
| Friday 9 June | 14 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Brookvale Oval | 14 – 18 | Jaelen Feeney, Daniel Levi | Brock Lamb (3/3) | 4,189 |
| | 15 | BYE | | | | | |
| Sunday 25 June | 16 | St George Illawarra | UOW Jubilee Oval | 28 – 32 | Nathan Ross (3), Brendan Elliot, Lachlan Fitzgibbon | Brock Lamb (4/6) | 10,174 |
| Sunday 2 July | 17 | Wests Tigers | McDonald Jones Stadium | 12 – 33 | Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Joe Wardle | Trent Hodkinson (2/2) | 19,531 |
| Sunday 9 July | 18 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | Belmore | 18 – 20 | Peter Mata'utia (2), Chanel Mata'utia | Trent Hodkinson (3/4), Brock Lamb (0/1) | 13,103 |
| 15 July 2017 | 19 | Brisbane Broncos | McDonald Jones Stadium | 34 – 22 | Dane Gagai, Daniel Levi, Chanel Mata'utia, Sione Mata'utia | Trent Hodkinson (3/4) | 13,773 |
| Friday 21 July | 20 | Sydney Roosters | Allianz Stadium | 4 – 28 | Shaun Kenny-Dowall | Trent Hodkinson (0/1) | 7,121 |
| 29 July 2017 | 21 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | McDonald Jones Stadium | 21 – 14 | Shaun Kenny-Dowall, Brock Lamb, Jacob Sifiti | Trent Hodkinson (4/4) and (FG) | 15,031 |
| Saturday 5 August | 22 | New Zealand Warriors | McDonald Jones Stadium | 26 – 10 | Mitchell Barnett (2), Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Brock Lamb | Trent Hodkinson (5/6) | 11,824 |
| Friday 11 August | 23 | Parramatta Eels | ANZ Stadium | 29 – 10 | Ken Sio, Mitchell Barnett, Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Brock Lamb | Trent Hodkinson (4/5), Brett Lamb (FG) | 13,141 |
| Saturday 19 August | 24 | Melbourne Storm | McDonald Jones Stadium | 12 – 44 | Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Joe Wardle | Trent Hodkinson (2/2) | 16,001 |
| Friday 25 August | 25 | Canberra Raiders | GIO Stadium | 28 – 46 | Shaun Kenny-Dowall, Mitchell Barnett, Jamie Buhrer, Daniel Saifiti | Trent Hodkinson (4/5) | 10,523 |
| Sunday 3 September | 26 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | McDonald Jones Stadium | 18 – 26 | Lachlan Fitzgibbon (2), Daniel Levi | Trent Hodkinson (3/3) | 20,535 |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw ||||||||

## Statistics

| Name | Appearances | Tries | Goals | Field Goals | Points | Captain | Age |
| Tyrone Amey | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Mitchell Barnett | 22 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 23 |
| Jamie Buhrer | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 28 |
| Jack Cogger | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| Brendan Elliot | 12 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 23 |
| Jaelen Feeney | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 23 |
| Lachlan Fitzgibbon | 14 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 0 | 23 |
| Dane Gagai | 23 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 26 |
| Jacob Gagan | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 24 |
| Trent Hodkinson | 17 | 1 | 46 | 1 | 97 | 7 | 29 |
| Shaun Kenny-Dowall | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 29 |
| Josh King | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| Brock Lamb | 21 | 5 | 23 | 1 | 67 | 0 | 20 |
| Danny Levi | 24 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 22 |
| Sam Mataora | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| Chanel Mata'utia | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 25 |
| Peter Mata'utia | 24 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 0 | 27 |
| Sione Mata'utia | 22 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 15 | 21 |
| Mickey Paea | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 |
| Dylan Phythian | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| Tyler Randell | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 |
| Nathan Ross | 20 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 0 | 29 |
| Daniel Saifiti | 23 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 21 |
| Jacob Saifiti | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 21 |
| Ken Sio | 21 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 27 |
| Josh Starling | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| Jack Stockwell | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 25 |
| Sam Stone | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 20 |
| Anthony Tupou | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 |
| Joe Wardle | 17 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 26 |
| Luke Yates | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| Totals | 24 | 72 | 69 | 2 | 418 | - | Average: 25 |
31 players used.
Source:

## Representative honours

The following players appeared in a representative match in 2017.
Australia
* Dane Gagai
Australian Schoolboys
* Luke Huth (squad member)
Cook Islands
* Sam Mataora
Fiji
* Michael Potter (coach)
* Daniel Saifiti
* Jacob Saifiti
Indigenous All Stars
* Dane Gagai
Italy
* Jack Johns
Junior Kangaroos
* Sam Stone
New South Wales City
* Pauli Pauli
* Nathan Ross
New South Wales Residents
* Josh King (18th man)
* Nick Meaney (19th man)
New South Wales under-16s
* Bradman Best
* Harry Croker
* Cooper Jenkins
* Jaron Purcell (captain)
New South Wales under-20s
* Nick Meaney
New Zealand
* Danny Levi
Prime Minister's XIII
* Dane Gagai
Queensland
* Dane Gagai
Samoa
* Peter Mata'utia
* Sione Mata'utia
Scotland
* Joe Wardle (train-on squad)
World All Stars
* Sione Mata'utia

## Individual honours
### Teams and squads

Intrust Super Premiership New South Wales Team of the Year
* Tom Hughes

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

* National Rugby League (NRL) Player of the Year: Mitchell Barnett
* Intrust Super Premiership NSW Player of the Year: Nick Meaney
* National Youth Competition (NYC) Player of the Year: Zac Hosking

#### Players' Player

* National Rugby League (NRL) Players' Player: Daniel Saifiti
* Intrust Super Premiership NSW Players' Player: Tom Hughes
* National Youth Competition (NYC) Players' Player: Matt Cooper

#### Coach's Award

* National Rugby League (NRL) Coach's Award: Jamie Buhrer
* Intrust Super Premiership NSW Coach's Award: Braden Robson
* National Youth Competition (NYC) Coach's Award: Heath Gibbs