Gutsy Knights hold out rusty Wests Tigers

v BYE

The Newcastle Knights have recorded their first win of season 2016 with a gutsy and heart stopping 18-16 defeat of the Wests Tigers in a grueling game at Hunter Stadium this afternoon. 

The game started with a frantic pace that remained for the opening 40 minutes. The Knights were their own worst enemies at times during the half with costly errors. The Tigers drew blood on 11 minutes after a wonderful run by Mitchell Moses was finished off by the diminutive fullback James Tedesco. Moses drew in two tired and weary Newcastle defenders and sliced through, his pass on the inside was picked up well by Tedesco who slammed the ball over the line. The backing up ability by Tedesco again reinforced why he is one of the most dangerous players in the NRL.

Newcastle were in trouble of letting the game slip away, but fortuitously they took control off a Wests Tigers error that came 1 play after James Tedesco raced  50 metres downfield. What followed was powerful runs by Jeremy Smith and young gun Jaelen Feeney. This set up a nice try to fan favourite Akulia Uate who took his chance to hold off two players and score in the corner. Hodkinson gave the Knights the lead 6-4.

8 minutes later though the Tigers had stolen the lead back with a try to Jordan Rankin. Some average defence from Feeney let Luke Brooks get on the outside of him showcasing some good pace and his pass was snapped up gleefully by Rankin who slid over and then converted his own try to again  restore parity for the Tigers.

However, Newcastle ensured that they would take the lead into the half time interval with a nice try to Korbin Sims. Trent Hodkinson took on the line with vigor and after showing a nice dummy, slid past two defenders and popped a nice ball on the outside for Korbin Sims to dive under the posts. It was vintage Hodkinson who will have the upcoming state of origin series on his mind as he attempts to consolidate his spot. The ensuring conversion conversion made it 12-10 and surprisingly the home side had the lead.

The 2nd half picked up where the 1st ended as the speed of the game continue to be highly paced. Both side showed a physicality in defence that their fans hadn't seen a whole lot of so far in season 2016. However it didn't take long for that to fade away and the points to come flowing back.

The Knights further extended their lead when winger Nathan Ross picked up a very smart grubber by playmaker Jarrod Mullen and slid over in the corner. Mullen's kick was in behind the on rushing defence of the Tigers who simply couldn't there in time and Ross finished off the move perfectly. Hodkinson pushed the lead out past the converted try with his 3rd goal of the match.

The Wests Tigers had to be the next to score to keep themselves in the game and in a game that was end to end attack it was taking the energy out of some of the fittest players in the game. The Tigers were the next to score and again it came from a costly Newcastle error. Jaelen Feeney was again caught out of position and some quick hands including a ripper pass by James Tedesco to  Jordan Rankin who dotted down for his 2nd try of the match. His conversion brought us back to a 18-16 scoreline and what promised to be an exciting final 20 minutes. Both sides appeared to be running on empty for much of the 2nd half as the speed of the game caught up with them. The Knights thought they had a try in the corner 10 minutes from time, however a brilliant tap down from Jordan Rankin stopped the pass and ensured that the Tigers lived to fight another day as the Knights lost the ball on the very next tackle.

The Wests Tigers threw absolutely everything at the Knights. From towering bombs to cut out passes, they tried anything to crack the defence of the Novacastrions but it was all in vein as the Knights dug in and refused to wilt under the pressure to record their first win of season 2016 in heart stopping fashion 18-16.

Next week the black and gold head home to Leichhardt to host the Storm, while the Knights have a tough trek to Brisbane in store on Saturday.