Knights Fail To Entertain (or Perform)
by JohnO on 17/5/25McDonald Jones Stadium - NewcastleRating: 3 out of 5I attended this game without any real expectations of success for the Knights ~ the team I have supported and been a member of since its inception in 1988! The opposition ~ The Eels ~ were also lowly placed. The atmosphere was nothing like it once was! This despite it being a milestone achievement of 300 NRL games for Dane Gagai. The atmosphere is artificially driven by a ground DJ /Announcer and reference to the Big Screens. But the crowd never really "got into it". In the end, The Eels of Parramatta, did win. But two of their tries occurred when the Knights were one player down (KPP in the sin bin for a "soft"penalty). Despite that, Parra were the better team on the night and would have won anyway. The Knights (and Parra too, actually) will not challenge for this year's title. I doubt that either team will make the final 8. Pre game entertainment needs to be improved ! Being right next door to the Knights Centre of Excellence, the teams could warm up there rather than "on ground". Then they could emerge ready to play, as they did in the old days. Much more a sense of theatre! Why not showcase a local band from the southern end near the scoreboard , or a visiting act, perhaps. Why not bring in novelty acts such as the Pal Puppies? (They were previously very popular when featured once per season years ago) Catch for Cash or Kick for Cash can also be entertaining . So .... The Knights need to improve markedly for 2026. And Pre Game Entertainment needs work too.