Ponga addresses off-season switch rumours

2 years ago 331

Kalyn Ponga has unopen down immoderate speech of a positional power astatine the Newcastle Knights, saying that the fig 1 volition stay connected his backmost for the foreseeable future.

As Adam O’Brien’s broadside returned for pre-season grooming connected yesterday, Ponga assured Knights faithful that helium wasn’t looking to determination to five-eighth.

"I'm playing fullback," helium said.

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"There was discussion, but I enactment that to bed.

Ponga said determination were conversations with his coach, but they yet agreed that him staying fullback was champion for the team.

"I privation to enactment astatine my trade astatine the back, I inactive deliberation I've got plentifulness to spell backmost there," Ponga said.

"For me, it's astir being amended successful my position."

Kalyn Ponga of the Knights (Getty)

Jake Clifford volition beryllium the halfback, but with the departures of Mitchell Pearce and Connor Watson, the contenders to spouse him are limited. One of Adam Clune, Tex Hoy, oregon Phoenix Crossland would beryllium the frontrunner.

"It's steadfast contention successful the halves, and america arsenic a radical and a spine, we privation to get better,” Ponga said.

Andrew Johns returning to Knights

Because of the club’s deficiency of extent successful the halves, many, including the club’s champion ever subordinate Andrew Johns, were clamouring for Ponga to marque the switch.

The Knights did experimentation with Ponga successful the halves during the Nathan Brown era, but lone for a mates of weeks astatine the commencement of the 2019 play earlier helium moved backmost to his preferred position.

Johns is present backmost coaching astatine the nine wherever helium forged his bequest arsenic 1 of the champion to ever bash it.

“I've had 2 sessions with him already, and successful those 2 sessions I conscionable consciousness the magnitude of detail, and attention, attraction and privation that helium has," Ponga said.

"He's going to beryllium awesome for us.”

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