Squad Breakdown: Newcastle Knights 2023 SuperCoach analysis


<p>1. Lachlan Miller</p>



<p>2. Greg Marzhew</p>



<p>3. Bradman Best</p>



<p>4. Dane Gagai</p>



<p>5. Dom Young</p>



<p>6. Kalyn Ponga</p>



<p>7. Jackson Hastings</p>



<p>8. Jacob Saifiti</p>



<p>9. Jayden Brailey</p>



<p>10. Daniel Saifiti</p>



<p>11. Tyson Frizell</p>



<p>12. Lachlan Fitzgibbon</p>



<p>13. Adam Elliott </p>



<p>14. Kurt Mann</p>



<p>15. Leo Thompson</p>



<p>16. Brodie Jones</p>



<p>17. Jack Hetherington </p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Team News </strong></h2>



<p>Recruit Lachlan Miller will play fullback, while Greg Marzhew is likely to edge Enari Tuala and Hymel Hunt for the left role. </p>



<p>Provided he’s fit for Round 1, Lachlan Fitzgibbon is expected to start on the left edge. </p>



<p>Returning from a groin injury of his own, Adam Elliott will start at lock, but I’m expecting him to spend plenty of time on that left edge outside Kalyn Ponga in 2023. When that shift occurs, Kurt Mann will come onto the field at lock. </p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Draw </strong></h2>



<p>Warriors (A), Tigers (A), Dolphins (H), Raiders (H), Sea Eagles (A), Warriors (H), Panthers (H), Cowboys (A), Eels (A), bye. </p>



<p><strong>First five round strength of schedule rating (1 toughest, 10 easiest) </strong></p>



<p>8/10 </p>



<p><strong>2023 gains</strong> </p>



<p><em>Squad changes via NRL.com </em></p>



<p>Adam Elliott (Raiders), Jack Hetherington (Bulldogs), Tyson Gamble (Broncos), Jackson Hastings (Wests Tigers), Greg Marzhew (Titans), Lachlan Miller (Sharks). </p>



<p><strong>2023 losses </strong></p>



<p>Mitchell Barnett (Warriors), Edrick Lee (Dolphins), Jirah Momoisea (Eels), Tex Hoy (Hull FC), Anthony Milford (Dolphins), Sauaso Sue (Hull KR), Pasami Saulo (Raiders), Jake Clifford (Hull FC), David Klemmer (Wests Tigers), Chris Randall (Titans), Max Bradbury (Sharks). </p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Guns</strong></h2>



<p><strong>Jayden Brailey ($607,700)</strong></p>



<p>Realistically there aren’t any guns at the Knights if we’re basing off price range, with Brailey the top dollar player at just $607k. </p>



<p>I’m not going to go into detail around the hooker, as I think there are just far better buys at hooker this season, it’s a bit of a gold mine for Supercoach talent for round 1, but Brailey is a player I believe is starting undervalued and will only improve two seasons back from an ACL injury. </p>



<p>He looked terrific in the trials and may be a sneaky pairing to Harry Grant at some stage. </p>



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<p><strong>Greg Marzhew ($581,200) </strong></p>



<p>Oh big Greg, so enticing… </p>



<p>Newcastle’s draw to begin the season is very friendly, and he’s expected to win that golden left wing spot outside Kalyn Ponga. </p>



<p>When in the team, he’s a Supercoach God, busting tackles, scoring tries, adding in a strong workrate, all signs point to big points. </p>



<p>My concerns are job security as he doesn’t have the best defensive read in the game, hence why we haven’t seen him more regularly at NRL level in the past. </p>



<p>He’s only one or two poor performances away from being dropped. </p>



<p>The other is that a major part of his value is having Ponga on his edge, who has major concerns around niggling injuries and concussion risk, so if he’s out, Marzhew becomes a risk. </p>



<p>But as it stands, Marzhew is there, as is Ponga, and he has huge scoring potential. </p>



<p>He was immense in the trial, busting nine tackles and scoring a try. Could be worth a flyer, although he’s pretty expensive priced on a 55 point average.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Mid-Rangers</strong></h2>



<p><strong>Kalyn Ponga ($530,600) </strong></p>



<p>KP is very intriguing, my heart sees his ceiling of potential 150+ scores against soft opposition. </p>



<p>My head sees a guy who is one more concussion away from numerous weeks out, who had a lingering calf injury in the pre-season, not goal-kicking, in a new position, with new combinations. </p>



<p>Then, I see the fact he’s priced on a 50 point average from 2022, while averaging 68, 80 and 68 in the three seasons prior. </p>



<p>More than anything though it’s the concussion risk that has me concerned. </p>



<p>I’m semi-content on my decision to avoid for now, but there is so much appeal and upside to starting with him. </p>



<p>Decisions, decisions… </p>



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<p><strong>Lachlan Miller ($593,500) </strong></p>



<p>I’m not overly keen on Miller, but I do see the appeal of a high workrate fullback, available at CTW. </p>



<p>For many of the reasons above he’s similar to Ponga, minus the injury concern. </p>



<p>I’m just not entirely convinced on him and he’s already priced on around a 57 point average, after receiving a discount having played just six games last season for his 63 point average. </p>



<p>I think my biggest hesitation with this side is that I’m not sure what they’ll throw up early. </p>



<p>A soft draw is great on face value, but you still need to be a good enough team to capitalise on that draw, and I just don’t know where the Knights are at.</p>



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<p><strong>Daniel Saifiti ($484,400)</strong></p>



<p>Can D.Saf or brother Jacob step up and fill the enormous void left by David Klemmer up front? </p>



<p>Perhaps, but the trials didn’t fill me with too much hope. He’s priced on a 46 point average in 52 minutes, the season prior he averaged 59 in 54 minutes. </p>



<p>2020 was his best Supercoach season, averaging 63 points in just 48 minutes! </p>



<p>What this shows is that it’s not so much an increase minutes he needs to improve scoring, because that’s unlikely, but how effective can he be in that time? </p>



<p>Probably a wait and watch for me early, but there’s certainly merit to starting with him. </p>



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<p><strong>Adam Elliott ($564,500) </strong></p>



<p>Adam Elliott will become a great buy this season I believe, playing big minutes between middle and edge. </p>



<p>However he’s also had an interrupted pre-season with injury, missing both trials. </p>



<p>I’m keen to see how he returns from his injury niggles and more so how many minutes he’ll play early as he builds match fitness. </p>



<p>I think he’ll start at lock and then shift to the left edge outside Kalyn Ponga, which could lead to a host of attacking stats, that back-row spot outside KP is a wonderful spot to be. </p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Cheapies </strong></h2>



<p><strong>Jack Hetherington ($266,600) </strong></p>



<p>There aren’t really any cheapies as it stands at the Knights to start the season. </p>



<p>Hetherington may not even play round 1, and has never really been at all Supercoach relevant with limited output, so he’d need big minutes in a starting position. </p>



<p>There are numerous players that one or two injuries away from relevance such as Bailey Hodgson, Hymel Hunt, Jack Johns etc, but for now they’re all a no-go.</p>


Squad Breakdown: Newcastle Knights 2023 SuperCoach analysis

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