Kalyn Ponga silences growing speculation, sticks by the Knights

Knights star Kalyn Ponga has found himself at the centre of growing speculation, but with one post he squashed the rumours.

The Newcastle Knights finally have a reason to breathe easy after Kalyn Ponga confirmed he wasn’t going anywhere.

Speculation had been running wild throughout the week that the Knights superstar was looking for the nearest exit.

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But on Thursday all those rumours were squashed with Ponga needing only six words to silence the noise he was wanting out.

“Committed to the end of 2027,” Ponga wrote.

He added: “Excited about the vision of the club. Appreciate those that support me.”

Kalyn Ponga is sticking by the club.

The confirmation silences rumours that began to swirl on Monday that the 27-year-old was being targeted by rebel rugby union competition R360.

Broncos legend Corey Parker said the yet to be established competition, that has the backing of Saudi Arabia, could pose a serious threat to the NRL.

“This rebel competition is threatening to steal a lot of stars out of the NRL,” Parker said on SENQ Breakfast, with Kalyn Ponga and Ryan Papenhuyzen also mentioned as possible targets.

“This R360, which is still yet to get off the ground, it is set to diminish and take away some of our superstars of the game. My question is, which NRL players would you target to go cross code for this competition in Saudi Arabia?

“There’s a real concern if this gets off the ground.”

Kalyn Ponga says he is sticking with the Knights. (Photo by Janelle St Pierre/Getty Images)

Knights legend Andrew Johns gave his blessing for Ponga to leave the Knights — either to join another NRL club, play rugby union or sign up to the breakaway R360 league — insisting he would say “thank you” to Ponga for his service.

“I give him a big thank you for coming to the club and if he wants to move on, I say thank you for what you have done for the club,” Johns told the Freddie and the Eighth podcast.

“He has carried the club. He signed after the three wooden spoons in a row and that year, the Cowboys got to a grand final.

“Look, he got signed for big money but struggling clubs have to pay overs for a marquee player.

“He has attracted players to the club, he has attracted sponsors, I would imagine his social media reach would be huge.

“So I would say thank you to Kalyn for what you have delivered to the club. Thank you very much. If you want to move on, so be it.

“No animosity whatsoever.”

Despite all the noise, Ponga is set to stick around with the club and will form a partnership with Dylan Brown from next season onwards.

Originally published as Kalyn Ponga silences growing speculation, sticks by the Knights