To get a handle on the crisis confronting Adam O'Brien and his team this week after a disastrous day at the office yesterday, you only need to do the sums.
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The Knights have 29 top squad players contracted for this season and as of 6pm last night, 10 of them won't be available through injury for next weekend's Titans clash on the Gold Coast.
The injury list now includes Mitchell Pearce, Bradman Best, Edrick Lee, Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Tex Hoy, Phoenix Crossland, Dom Young, Jirah Momoisea, Bailey Hodgson and Brayden Musgrove.
If Kurt Mann is ruled out, which seems certain after his bad concussion in the loss to the Dragons, it becomes 11 and it becomes 12 if Kalyn Ponga doesn't tick off his final few boxes and is cleared to resume after his off-season shoulder surgery.
Even if Ponga plays, which is widely expected now, the loss of David Klemmer to either injury [knee] or suspension [he is on report twice] would leave O'Brien with the bare 17 and that could be 16 if Jacob Saifiti is suspended for a shoulder charge in the same tackle on Dragons winger Mikaele Ravalawa that ko'ed Mann, which appears likely.
Backrower Tyson Frizell also limped through the back-end of the game with an ankle problem and was later spotted in a moon boot but it's hopeful he will be fit.
As a result, Simi Sasagi is set for an NRL debut off the bench and the Knights will be forced to ask the NRL for an exemption to use a development player just to fill their 17-man squad for the Titans game, remembering they have to name 21 players in their extended squad on Tuesday. They could be forced to name as many as five development players.
Little wonder O'Brien looked and sounded absolutely shell-shocked after the game, presumably racking his brain trying to work out why the league Gods appear to have taken a cruel set against him and his side.
His only comfort following the 22-13 defeat was the bravery of the players he had left standing out there.
Co-captain Daniel Saifiti played the full 80mins in the middle, Klemmer played 63mins and stayed on for the final 20 through gritted teeth with that knee injury, Frizell was struggling but stayed out there, Mitch Barnett hardly trained all week because of a calf strain but played the full game with Jacob Saifiti playing 58 mins after battling a painful shin injury in the lead-up.
In the end, they just didn't have the personnel to get the job done once the Dragons got a sniff and poured on the second half pressure.
But it has to be said the Knights didn't get any favours from referee Peter Gough or his match officials.
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The Knights didn't get a penalty in the game [Dragons received 5] and were privately fuming at Gough's leniency with the 10 metres in defence, particularly when Newcastle was rucking it out from their own line.
He twice pinged the Dragons for off-side on the first tackle but on both occasions, simply ruled six again which hardly advantaged the Knights.
Gough also missed Dragons prop Blake Lawrie not being square and blatantly off-side from the play-the-ball when he pressured Blake Green for the charge-down that led to Tariq Sim's try. The forward pass ruling on Barnett when Hymel Hunt scored late was also hotly disputed.
O'Brien was understandably full of praise for his team and told them as much after the game.
"Yeah, Adz said he was proud of the way we hung in there for each other despite the injuries and what was happening around us," Barnett said.
"In a lot of areas. we still hurt ourselves but it's hard to be too critical when you lose your 7, 1 and 6 and Greeny was having his first game back in seven months. It was a big effort from everyone across the board.
"But going forward, we have been dealt the cards so we just have to take the challenge head-on."
Mitchell Pearce was fearing the worst as he left the ground with his left arm in a sling but won't know the extent of his pec tear until after he has scans.
"It doesn't look too good but if there is one bloke who can deal with a few punches and rolled with them and bounce back it's him," Barnett said of Pearce.
"He's done it 450,000 times in his career so hopefully he can do it one more time."
Barry Toohey
Barry Toohey is a sports reporter for the Newcastle Herald. He covers the Newcastle Knights and hosts the Toohey's News Podcast.
Barry Toohey is a sports reporter for the Newcastle Herald. He covers the Newcastle Knights and hosts the Toohey's News Podcast.
