Knights not bothered by poor record at Brookvale Oval
THE last time Newcastle won at Brookvale Oval it was 2006. Andrew Johns was captain and the Knights travelled back up the freeway with a 26-12 victory. It’s not a happy hunting ground.
THE last time Newcastle won at Brookvale Oval was in 2006. Andrew Johns was captain and the Knights travelled back up the freeway after a 26-12 victory that helped them to a fourth-place finish that season.
The Knights have visited seven times since and Manly have put an average winning margin of 16 points on them.
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With just two wins from 18 trips there, it’s not a happy hunting ground.
And given the recent events on the peninsula, Newcastle head to Brookvale on Friday to face a fired up Sea Eagles side.
One man who knows better than most what to expect is Newcastle’s Jamie Buhrer, who spent seven seasons at Manly.
“(It will be a) pretty aggressive (response) I’d imagine,” Knights co-captain Buhrer said.
“I haven’t watched or seen too much of what’s going on but there’s enough to say that they’ve got motivation to get them through the year.”
Now in his second year with Newcastle, he isn’t intimidated by the task ahead taking on a club in turmoil and rabid fans desperate for a win.
In fact, he reckons it’s an environment the Knights know well.
“Brookvale is different in the sense that I’m a Knight now. I’m going down there to win and break the hearts of the Manly fans,” he said.
“I’ve played at the field for a long time, I was used to it, but no one likes playing there. It’s a really heavy track, the fans are on top of you.
“It’s similar to us when we play at home. Even last year, we played our best football at home. This year we’ve shown a couple of strong performances at home.
“Any time you’re playing in front of your home fans gives you that extra motivation. They’re going to have the home fans there trying to do the best they can to get them home.”
Forward Mitch Barnett said victory will hinge on the battle between the packs.
He knows the Knights’ big men must aim up to limit the impact of the likes of Martin Taupau, Jake Trbojevic and Joel Thompson and give new halves pairing Connor Watson and Jack Cogger every chance to shine.
“They’re a very physical pack, very big and strong. We’ve got to match them there and that’s where the game will be won or lost,” Barnett said.
“[Our] halves are going to go a lot better if we’re laying a good platform and going forward for them and also defending solidly and limiting offloads.
“We need to stop all the points we can, especially while the new halves are starting to gel. But I’m confident in our halves. It’s no new role for them, they’ve played together before and I’m very confident in the job they can do.”
Originally published as Knights not bothered by poor record at Brookvale Oval
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