Knights coach Adam O’Brien took a jab at his critics in his press conference following Newcastle’s 30-4 win over South Sydney during Magic Round on Saturday
Sticking with Fletcher Sharpe and Jack Cogger for the team’s halves pairing, the Knights were rewarded with four tries between them.
Sharpe, celebrating his 21st birthday, starred with a hat-trick in the rain at Suncorp Stadium while Cogger added the Knights’ third try in the opening 12 minutes.
Speaking to media post-match, O’Brien defended his decision to keep Sharpe and Cogger as his halfback and five-eighth pairing.
Last season, O’Brien was criticised heavily for swapping his halves around with Jackson Hastings, Tyson Gamble, Cogger, Phoenix Crossland and Will Pryce all featuring.
In 2025, O’Brien’s selection philosophy has once again been put under the microscope, however, the criticism could be judged as harsh.
Cogger and Sharpe have been the side’s consistent partners while Crossland has featured once, as has Gamble.
Gamble played in round seven after a six-month absence but was not selected for the Knights’ Magic Round fixture, despite being available, after undergoing surgery on a broken nose suffered against the Sharks.
O’Brien explained that he did not feel Gamble had experienced enough game time to warrant his selection, instead backing Cogger.
Asked if his decision was “vindication” considering his halves both played well against the Rabbitohs, O’Brien took a swipe.
“Tyson Gamble is a good footy player too, but he obviously came back for one game and had the fracture and had to go in and have surgery. I just felt like one game in six months wasn’t enough, and I didn’t think Cogs [Cogger] had done enough for me to leave him out of the team,” he said.
“So, I’d rather rely on the guys who are coming back to make the biggest difference than removing people.
“As I said during the week in any media that I’ve done, I wasn’t chopping and changing this year. I was picking and sticking, and that wasn’t because everyone wanted me to last year.
“A very contradictive [sic] bunch at the moment, you lot.”
The victory over the Rabbitohs snapped the Knights’ five-game losing streak.
Fletcher Sharpe of the Knights scores his third try against the Rabbitohs. Hannah Peters via Getty Images
Asked if the result came as a relief, O’Brien again addressed the press pack’s swaying support with another sarcastic remark.
“It’s one game,” he said.
“We’re used to it, I’m used to it, these guys are used to it [the pressure].
“I’ve been here six years, it’s happened every year, so I don’t want it, but it’s not going to help us worrying about it. We know what works for us and we work our way out of it.
“But it is one game too and I am very mindful that we need to stick at this … and not get carried away at the same time.
“So, you [media] might be at bay for tomorrow but you’ll probably come back at me at some point.”
