JUST weeks after coach Adam O'Brien declared "we don't want to get rid of our local players", home-grown forwards Lachlan Fitzgibbon and Brodie Jones are pondering the prospect of reluctantly leaving Newcastle at season's end.
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Fitzgibbon and Jones are among a host of off-contract Knights vying for a handful of vacant spots on the club's top-30 roster next season.
Fitzgibbon, a South Newcastle junior and one of the Knights' longest-serving players, is weighing up a move to the English Super League.
Jones, who spent his formative years with Cessnock Goannas, is unsure if he features in O'Brien's plans for next year and accepts he may have to continue his career elsewhere.
"Ideally I'd like to stay, but sometimes a plan doesn't always go to plan," Jones said.
"At the end of the day, it's a business and I leave all that stuff to my manager.
"I'll just focus on playing the best footy I can."
A 2016 Australian Schoolboys representative, Jones made his NRL debut in 2020 and has now appeared in 48 top-grade games, including six this season.
Better known as a back-rower, or even a stopgap centre, Jones showed his versatility by playing as a middle forward during Saturday's 18-16 loss to Sydney Roosters.
Fitzgibbon, meanwhile, said he was considering a number of clubs in England but had not ruled out re-signing with Newcastle.
"At this stage, I'm probably not looking to go elsewhere in the NRL," he said.
"So if I don't stay with the Knights, I'll probably head overseas. I'm still weighing up a few options on the table and haven't made any decision."
A 2015 debutant, Fitzgibbon has played in 111 NRL games for his home-town team and, after two injury-plagued seasons, has missed only one game this year.
He is expected to be ruled out of Saturday's clash with premiers Penrith at BlueBet Stadium after suffering a concussion against the Roosters.
It is understood Newcastle's medical staff diagnosed a grade-two concussion but were overruled by the NRL's independent assessor, who rated it a grade-one incident requiring an 11-day stand-down. It is unclear if the Knights will challenge that, as Manly did recently with Tom Trbojevic.
O'Brien will be sweating on the availability of senior forwards Daniel Saifiti and Tyson Frizell.
Saifiti missed last week's game with a sternum injury, while Frizell will represent NSW in Wednesday's second State of Origin showdown at Suncorp Stadium.
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