Sea Eagles coach Trent Barrett hands Liam Knight his NRL debut

THE ongoing rehabilitation of rising young Sea Eagles forward Liam Knight will be rewarded on Monday when he makes his NRL debut against the Titans .

Liam Knight (centre) teams up with Steve Matai and Jake Trojevic smash an Ipswich Jets player in a trial early this season.

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THE ongoing rehabilitation of rising young Sea Eagles forward Liam Knight will be rewarded on Monday when he makes his NRL debut against the Titans on the Gold Coast after being cleared by the NRL.

Coach Trent Barrett is giving the 21-year-old his big break for putting in the hard yards to get his career back on track after it was derailed when he was pulled over for high-range drink-driving in March.

It was revealed at the time of his arrest he panicked, grabbed a can of Aerogard and sprayed it into his mouth.

Knight subsequently pleaded guilty to the drink-driving charge and was sentenced to an 18-month good behaviour bond and had his licence disqualified for eight months.

Manly Warringah forward Liam Knight leaves Manly Courthouse after pleading guilty to a high range drink driving charge..

“Liam Knight will make his debut this week which will be fantastic for him,” Barrett said.

“We had to apply to the NRL to be able to play (him) but given the injuries that we have got and losing Nate Myles and losing Dylan Walker we are a number of players down.

“I am really happy for Liam, it’s going to be a big occasion for him and he has worked really hard to earn his spot.”

Over the past three months Barrett has noticed the progression in Knight’s attitude to training and discipline.

“They are things we need to keep working on and we will,” Barrett said.

Manly's coach Trent Barrett is giving Liam Knight his big break. Picture: Jenny Evans

“It’s a big step for him and he just has to make sure he knuckles down.

“We certainly know he is a good player but it takes more than that to be a regular first grader.”

Captain Jamie Lyon was named in the side at five-eighth for the Titans’ game and Barrett rates him a 50-50 chance of playing.

“He will make the trip and we will assess him up there, he is at that age when the hamstrings take a bit longer to heal,” Barrett said.

If Lyon doesn’t play, 23-year-old Jake Trbojevic will skipper the side after he shared the duties with Myles against Penrith last Sunday.

“I thought he did a good job last week and I see him as a future leader of our club,” Barrett said.