The Newcastle Knights have climbed into the top eight after winning their fifth consecutive game on Saturday, beating the Dolphins 30-28 in a thriller at Perth's Optus Stadium.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
With four rounds remaining, Newcastle now have their destiny in their own hands in the race for the finals, after leapfrogging from ninth on the ladder to sixth, pending results of other matches this weekend.
Newcastle had to fight back from a 14-12 half-time deficit and defend grimly at the death to secure two crucial competition points.
The Knights drew first blood in the 12th minute when skipper Kalyn Ponga backed up a line break from winger Dom Young to score between the posts.
The match then swung dramatically following a controversial tackle in the 22nd minute, after which Newcastle lock Adam Elliott was replaced for running repairs with blood flowing from a head wound, and back-rower Lachlan Fitzgibbon was sin-binned for an alleged hip drop.
In the 10 minutes that Newcastle were down to 12 men, Dolphins winger Jamayne Isaako ran in a hat-trick of tries to give his team a 14-6 lead.
A dummy-half try by Newcastle utility Kurt Mann reduced the deficit to two points by half-time.
A try by Dolphins centre Valynce Te Whare in the 49th minute gave his team an eight-point advantage, but Newcastle hit back with tries by halfback Jackson Hastings, hoker Phoenix Crossland and winger Greg Marzhew, his 15th of the season.
Just when it appeared the Knights were home and hosed, Dolphins forward Connelly Lemuelu scored to set up a nail-biting finish.
The main post-match concern for the Knights was a hamstring injury that looks set to sign Origin prop Jacob Saifiti.
MORE IN SPORT:
To see more stories and read today's paper download the Newcastle Herald news app here.
Or if your story has open comments:
WHAT DO YOU THINK? Join the discussion in the comment section below.
Find out how to register or become a subscriber here.
