2007 Newcastle Knights season

2007 Newcastle Knights season
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The 2007 Newcastle Knights season was the 20th in the club's history. They competed in the NRL's 2007 Telstra Premiership, finishing second-last.

Season summary

2007 was a year of turmoil for the Newcastle Knights club both on and off the field. After making a promising start to the season with victories over contenders such as the Canterbury Bulldogs – the club and rugby league world was rocked by the shock retirement of Andrew Johns. The departure of their captain and most influential player had an obvious effect on the team, and although they managed to stay in touch with the top eight until the last third of the season, their season was irreparably damaged by his absence. In addition to this – the Knights endured the worst injury toll in the 2007 season – fielding thirty seven players in first grade by season's end.

The club also struggled off-field, with Brian Smith's decision to release loyal clubmen such as Clint Newton (who subsequently won a grand final with the Melbourne Storm; which was later stripped due to salary cap breaches), Kirk Reynoldson, and Josh Perry (who subsequently played in Manly's 2008 premiership) meeting with displeasure from the Sydney media and some sections of the Newcastle support base. Newton's defection to Melbourne and Reynoldson's threats of legal action over the club refusing to play him in the fifteen games required to trigger his fourth contract year saw the club's reputation dragged through the mud. The Daily Telegraph campaigned strongly for the sacking of Smith whilst Bluetongue owner John Singleton also threatened legal action after the releases lead to a multimillion-dollar advertising campaign being cancelled. To cap it all off, Andrew Johns again made the press late in the season after being arrested for ecstasy possession in the United Kingdom and confessing to having been a drug addict for the entirety of his playing career.

Despite these pressures, the Knights managed to avoid a second wooden spoon in three years – offloading the dreaded piece of 'silverware' to the Penrith Panthers with a last round victory over the Wests Tigers.

Ladder

2007 NRL season
Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	B	PF	PA	PD	Pts
1	Melbourne Storm	24	21	0	3	1	627	277	+350	44
2	Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles	24	18	0	6	1	597	377	+220	38
3	North Queensland Cowboys	24	15	0	9	1	547	618	−71	32
4	New Zealand Warriors	24	13	1	10	1	593	434	+159	29
5	Parramatta Eels	24	13	0	11	1	573	481	+92	28
6	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	24	12	0	12	1	575	528	+47	26
7	South Sydney Rabbitohs	24	12	0	12	1	408	399	+9	26
8	Brisbane Broncos	24	11	0	13	1	511	476	+35	24
9	Wests Tigers	24	11	0	13	1	541	561	−20	24
10	Sydney Roosters	24	10	1	13	1	445	610	−165	23
11	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	24	10	0	14	1	463	403	+60	22
12	Gold Coast Titans	24	10	0	14	1	409	559	−150	22
13	St George Illawarra Dragons	24	9	0	15	1	431	509	−78	20
14	Canberra Raiders	24	9	0	15	1	522	650	−128	20
15	Newcastle Knights	24	9	0	15	1	418	708	−290	20
16	Penrith Panthers	24	8	0	16	1	539	607	−68	18

Fixtures

Regular season

Season 2007 – Draw and Results
Round	Date & Time	Knights vs	Venue	Result	Scorers	Crowd
1	Sun, 18 March 2pm	Bulldogs	EnergyAustralia Stadium	Win	Knights(25): Terrence Seu Seu, Josh Perry, Todd Polglase, James McManus tries; Kurt Gidley (4/5) goals; Kurt Gidley field goal. Bulldogs(24): Andrew Ryan, Luke Patten, Reni Maitua, Trent Cutler tries; Hazem El Masri (4/4) goals.	18,791
2	Fri, 23 March 7:30pm	Dragons	Oki Jubilee Stadium	Win	Dragons(12): Chase Stanley, Keith Lulia tries; Wes Naiqama (2/3) goals Knights(16): Clint Newton, James McManus, Brad Tighe, George Carmont tries; Kurt Gidley (0/3), Daniel Abraham (0/1) goals	12,326
3	Mon, 2 April 7pm	Raiders	Canberra Stadium	Loss	Canberra(48): William Zillman(3), Marshall Chalk, Lincoln Withers, Scott Logan, Colin Best, Phil Graham tries; Michael Dobson (8/10) goals. Knights(18): Adam MacDougall, Milton Thaiday, Cory Paterson tries; Andrew Johns (3/3) goals.	13,109
4	Sat, 7 April 5:30pm	Storm	Energy Australia Stadium	Loss	Knights(12): Steve Simpson, Daniel Abraham tries, Kurt Gidley (2/2) goals. Storm(22): Israel Folau(2), Matt King, Anthony Quinn tries, Cameron Smith (3/4) goals.	20,051
5	Sun, 15 April 2pm	Rabbitohs	Bluetongue Stadium	Win	Rabbitohs(22): David Faalogo, Dean Widders, Nigel Vagana, John Sutton tries, Joe Williams (3/4) goals. Knights(23): Kurt Gidley(2), James McManus, Brad Tighe tries, Kurt Gidley (3/4) goals, Kurt Gidley field goal.	18,321
6	Sun, 22 April 7pm	Broncos	Energy Australia Stadium	Loss	Knights(16): Todd Polglase(2), Adam MacDougall tries, Kurt Gidley (2/3) goals. Broncos(20): Darren Lockyer (1/1), Michael Ennis (1/3) goals.	25,524
7	Mon, 30 April 7pm	Sharks	Energy Australia Stadium	Win	Knights(20): Kirk Reynoldson(2), Kurt Gidley tries, Kurt Gidley (4/4) goals. Sharks(16): David Simmons(2), Ben Pomeroy tries, Luke Covell (2/3) goals.	15,453
8	Sun, 6 May 3pm	Bulldogs	Telstra Stadium	Loss	Bulldogs(30): Luke Patten(2), Reni Maitua, Matthew Utai, Hazem El Masri tries, Hazem El Masri (5/5) goals. Knights(16): Cory Paterson, Danny Buderus, James McManus tries, Kurt Gidley (2/3) goals.	12,654
9	Sat, 12 May 5:30pm	Warriors	Energy Australia Stadium	Win	Knights(24): Kurt Gidley(2), Steve Simpson, Adam MacDougall tries, Kurt Gidley (4/4) goals. Warriors(18): Ruben Wiki, Nathan Fien, Jerome Ropati tries, Lance Hohaia (3/3) goals.	15,107
10	BYE	-	-	-		-
11	Sun, 27 May 2pm	Broncos	Suncorp Stadium	Loss	Broncos(71): Tonie Carroll(2), Brent Tate(2), Justin Hodges(2), Joel Moon, Greg Eastwood, Ben Hannant, Petero Civoniceva, Darius Boyd, Karmichael Hunt tries, Corey Parker (4/5), Michael Ennis (4/4), Darren Lockyer (3/3), Darren Lockyer field goal. Knights(6): Jarrod Mullen try, Cory Paterson (1/1) goal.	27,433
12	Sat, 2 June 5:30pm	Roosters	Bluetongue Stadium	Win	Roosters(18): Mitchell Pierce, Braith Anasta, Anthony Minichiello tries, Craig Fitzgibbon (3/4) goals. Knights(22): Brad Tighe, James McManus, Nathan Hinton, Cory Paterson tries, Cory Paterson (3/4) goals.	11,263
13	Sun, 10 June 3pm	Tigers	Energy Australia Stadium	Loss	Knights(14): Brad Tighe(2), Cory Paterson tries, Cory Paterson (1/3). Tigers(33): Liam Fulton, Chris Heighington, Taniela Tuiaki, Dean Collis, Robbie Farah tries, Dean Collis (6/6) goals, Robbie Farah field goal.	13,609
14	Mon, 18 Jun 7pm	Raiders	Energy Australia Stadium	Win	Knights(22): Adam MacDougall(2), Chris Bailey, Brad Tighe tries, Kurt Gidley (3/5) goals. Raiders(18): Brad Cross, Lincoln Withers, Colin Best tries, Michael Dobson (3/3) goals.	11,349
15	Sat, 23 June 7:30pm	Titans	Carrara Stadium	Loss	Titans(28): Matthew Peterson(3), Brett Delaney, Mat Rogers tries, Mat Rogers (4/5) goals. Knights(22): Daniel Tolar, Luke Walsh, Adam MacDougall, James McManus tries, Kurt Gidley (3/4) goals.	15,306
16	Fri, 29 June 7:30pm	Rabbitohs	Energy Australia Stadium	Loss	Knights(25): Adam MacDougall, George Carmont, Cooper Vuna, Cory Paterson, James McManus tries, Cory Paterson (2/5) goals, Luke Walsh field goal. Rabbitohs(28): Roy Asotasi(2), Nigel Vagana, Jeremy Smith, Ben Rogers tries, Reece Simmonds (2/2), Isaac Luke (2/3) goals.	16,320
17	Mon, 9 July 7pm	Eels	Parramatta Stadium	Win	Eels(10): Krisnan Inu, Feleti Mateo tries, Krisnan Inu (1/1), Mark Riddell (0/1) goals. Knights(34): George Carmont(2), Steve Simpson, Mitchell Sargent, Adam MacDougall, James McManus tries, Kurt Gidley (5/7) goals.	10,363
18	Mon, 16 July 7pm	Storm	Olympic Park	Loss	Storm(44): Steve Turner(2), Anthony Quinn(2), Billy Slater(2), Ryan Hoffman, Matt King, Clint Newton tries, Cameron Smith (3/6), Steve Turner (1/3) goals. Knights(0)	10,223
19	Sat, 21 July 7:30pm	Roosters	Energy Australia Stadium	Loss	Knights(17): Cooper Vuna(2), Adam MacDougall tries, Kurt Gidley (2/3) goals, Luke Walsh field goal. Roosters(20): David Shillington, Joel Monaghan, Lopini Paea, Mitchell Aubusson tries, Craig Fitzgibbon (2/4) goals.	15,171
20	Sat, 28 July 7:30pm	Warriors	Mt Smart Stadium	Loss	Warriors(52): Wade McKinnon(2), Grant Rovelli(2), Jerome Ropati(2), Steve Price, Wairangi Koopu, Manu Vatuvei tries, Michael Witt (8/9) goals. Knights(10): James McManus, Kirk Reynoldson tries, Kurt Gidley (1/2) goals.	11,301
21	Fri, 3 August 7:30pm	Dragons	Energy Australia Stadium	Loss	Knights(4): Kurt Gidley try, Kurt Gidley (0/1) goal. Dragons(20): Jamie Soward(2), Dan Hunt, Chase Stanley tries, Jamie Soward (2/4) goals.	12,573
22	Fri, 10 August 7:30pm	Sea Eagles	Bluetongue Stadium	Loss	Sea Eagles(50): Brett Stewart(2), Jamie Lyon(2), Jack Afamasaga, Glenn Stewart, Steve Menzies, Matt Orford, Adam Cuthbertson tries, Matt Orford (2/4), Jamie Lyon (4/4), Steve Menzies (1/1) goals. Knights(16): Brad Tighe, Steve Simpson, James McManus tries, Scott Dureau (2/3) goals.	17,122
23	Sun, 19 August 3pm	Panthers	Energy Australia Stadium	Loss	Penrith(46): Frank Pritchard(3), Michael Jennings(3), Michael Gordon tries, Michael Gordon (9/9) goals. Knights(12): 2 tries, Kurt Gidley (2/2) goals.	14,351
24	Fri, 24 August 7:30pm	Cowboys	Energy Australia Stadium	Loss	Cowboys(34): Ashley Graham(2), Johnathan Thurston, Matthew Bowen, Ty Williams, Neil Sweeney tries, Thurston (5/6) goals. Knights(18): Cooper Vuna, Chris Bailey, Cory Paterson tries, Kurt Gidley (3/3) goals.	12,264
25	Fri, 31 August 7:30pm	Tigers	Energy Australia Stadium	Win	Tigers(24): Benji Marshall(2), Chris Lawrence, John Morris tries, Marshall (4/5) goals. Knights(26): Cooper Vuna(2), Cory Paterson, Kurt Gidley tries, Kurt Gidley (5/5) goals.	13,446

Players

Newcastle Knights 2007 Full-time Squad
Player		Position	DOB (Age)	Height	Weight	Previous Club
Daniel Abraham		Lock/Utility	1981-03-11 (26)	188 cm	106 kg	Macquarie United
Chris Bailey		Lock/Utility	1982-07-05 (24)	186 cm	94 kg	Inverell Hawks
Riley Brown		Utility	1984-10-15 (22)	181 cm	92 kg	Singleton
Danny Buderus		Hooker	1978-02-06 (29)	178 cm	91 kg	Taree
George Carmont		Centre/Wing	1978-06-30 (28)	180 cm	91 kg	Otahuhu
Scott Dureau		Five Eighth/Halfback	1986-07-29 (20)	174 cm	83 kg	Port Macquarie
Paul Franze		Centre	1982-05-03 (25)	185 cm	97 kg	Castleford Tigers
Kurt Gidley		Fullback/Utility	1982-06-07 (24)	182 cm	87 kg	Western Suburbs (Newcastle)
Nathan Hinton		Fullback	1985-10-13 (21)	178 cm	84 kg	Western Suburbs (Newcastle)
Marvin Karawana		Five Eighth	1986-07-30 (20)	180 cm	94 kg	Canterbury Bulldogs
Adam MacDougall		Centre	1975-05-08 (31)	183 cm	95 kg	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Luke MacDougall		Wing/Centre	1983-02-05 (24)	183 cm	95 kg	St George Illawarra Dragons
James McManus		Wing/Centre	1986-01-15 (21)	185 cm	89 kg	-
Jarrod Mullen		Five Eighth/Halfback	1987-04-09 (20)	179 cm	86 kg	Western Suburbs (Newcastle)
Cory Paterson		Second Row	1987-07-14 (19)	194 cm	105 kg	-
Josh Perry		Prop	1981-02-04 (26)	187 cm	119 kg	Valentine-Eleebana
Todd Polglase		Fullback/Wing/Centre	1981-03-21 (26)	178 cm	85 kg	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Kirk Reynoldson		Second Row/Lock	1979-03-11 (28)	186 cm	102 kg	Melbourne Storm
Jesse Royal		Prop/Second Row	1980-05-20 (26)	190 cm	107 kg	Penrith Panthers
Mitchell Sargent		Prop	1979-07-02 (27)	187 cm	107 kg	North Queensland Cowboys
David Seage		Fullback	1979-11-29 (27)	183 cm	90 kg	-
Terrence Seu Seu		Hooker	1987-11-20 (19)	180 cm	89 kg	-
Steve Simpson		Second Row	1979-09-27 (27)	187 cm	104 kg	Singleton
Kade Snowden		Prop/Second Row	1986-12-31 (20)	188 cm	113 kg	-
Zeb Taia		Second Row	1984-10-11 (22)	186 cm	104 kg	Parramatta Eels
Reegan Tanner		Second Row/Lock	1982-09-27 (24)	183 cm	99 kg	Kurri Kurri
Mark Taufua		Prop/Second Row	1981-10-24 (25)	188 cm	103 kg	Waratahs (Newcastle)
Milton Thaiday		Fullback	1980-02-15 (27)	175 cm	83 kg	-
Brad Tighe		Centre/Wing	1984-04-05 (23)	183 cm	89 kg	West Tamworth
Daniel Tolar		Prop	1982-11-04 (25)	188 cm	100 kg	Central Charlestown
Willie Tupou		Second Row	1985-10-26 (21)	191 cm	105 kg	St George Illawarra Dragons
Akuila Uate		Wing	1987-10-06 (19)	185 cm	94 kg	-
Cooper Vuna		Wing	1987-07-05 (19)	182 cm	97 kg	New Zealand Warriors
Luke Walsh		Halfback	1987-05-12 (19)	-	-	-
Matthew White		Prop	1984-05-17 (22)	190 cm	110 kg	-
Adam Woolnough		Prop	1982-05-24 (24)	187 cm	109 kg	Wingham Tigers
Michael Young		Lock/Utility	1984-02-11 (23)	181 cm	90 kg	-