BRODIE Jones, the Cessnock Goannas junior who once doubted if he would ever make the grade, is set to become a long-term Newcastle Knight after signing a two-year contract extension.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Jones has been rewarded for his breakout season with a new deal taking him through until at least the end of 2023.
"I'm stoked, over the moon, to be honest," he told the Newcastle Herald.
"The Knights are my club, and I'm a local junior, so this is where I want to be."
The 23-year-old back-rower played seven NRL games off the bench last year, including a memorable 50-tackle effort on debut in a 14-all draw with Penrith.
This season he has strung together 12 appearances, the past 11 in a row, including match-winning contributions as a stopgap centre against both Cronulla and the Warriors.
Knights coach Adam O'Brien declared recently he was determined to keep Jones, and the 2016 Australian Schoolboys representative was only too happy to accept a new deal.
A combination of O'Brien's faith 18 months ago, along with a flick pass from Knights legend Kurt Gidley, was all that Jones needed to kick-start his NRL career.
In 2019, Jones admits he was "at the crossroads" and on the verge of giving the game away.
But O'Brien, who was newly arrived in Newcastle, liked the look of him from the outset, and after a strong pre-season took him in the squad for the Nines tournament in Perth.
Jones played strongly and crashed over for a try against the Warriors after a pass from 37-year-old Gidley, who had come out of retirement for a highly impressive guest stint at the Nines.
It restored his confidence that he was capable of playing at NRL level. "It was a good taste of it," Jones said.
"Most of the teams are full of NRL players, some big names, and I probably won that mental battle with myself, thinking that they were so much better than me.
"I realised I can do it. I knew I had to keep working but also that it wasn't unachievable. It probably put it in perspective."
The other major catalyst for Jones has been the belief shown in him by O'Brien, who has entrusted him with an array of challenging roles on game day.
"Having Adam come along, he helped me a lot," Jones said. "I can't thank him enough. He's made everything in my head a lot clearer.
"I used to overthink everything before, but he's helped simplify it for me, and I've reaped the rewards."
Jones said the two-year deal would provide some financial security.
"It makes life a bit easier," he said. "If everything is sorted off the field, it makes football less stressful."
Asked what he wanted to achieve over the course of his contract: "Hopefully I'm a regular starter and we're doing well as a team.
"That's why I'm sticking around, because I believe this club is going to grow a lot further over the next couple of years."
