Brisbane crash to second straight loss as Knights down Broncos 15-10

BRISBANE have stumbled again with the Broncos attack and halves again failing to fire in a troubling 15-10 defeat to the rejuvenated Newcastle Knights.

NEWCASTLE, AUSTRALIA — APRIL 07: Daniel Saifiti of the Knights celebrates his try with team mates during the round five NRL match between the Newcastle Knights and the Brisbane Broncos at McDonald Jones Stadium on April 7, 2018 in Newcastle, Australia. (Photo by Ashley Feder/Getty Images)

BRISBANE coach Wayne Bennett is under pressure to wield the axe on his misfiring squad after the bumbling Broncos crashed to a 15-10 defeat to a pumped-up Knights in Newcastle.

The Broncos’ pack was physically dominated and their backline again lacked scoring punch as the Knights played with more control, hunger and composure to stun their Brisbane bogey side.

Newcastle had lost their last six games to the Broncos, but their losing streak is over, the Knights leading from start to finish to raise major queries over Brisbane’s premiership bona fides.

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Knights young gun Kalyn Ponga was magnificent and NSW Origin halfback Mitchell Pearce was clinical, giving Brisbane halves Anthony Milford and Kodi Nikorima a masterclass in general-play execution.

The Broncos were tipped to bounce back from last week’s 26-14 capitulation against the Titans, but this wasn’t the emphatic fightback expected of Queensland’s flagship club.

Bennett should be concerned with a forward pack that simply isn’t dominating the midfield and it is putting pressure on halves Milford and Nikorima to strike a match-winning combination.

There is no scrumbase control, no backline class and no forward dominance. But Bennett is refusing to hit the panic button as they prepare for a torrid road trip to New Zealand to face the high-flying Warriors.

The Knights were hungrier in every aspect.

“It was much better than last week, Newcastle played well,” he said.

“We are lacking a bit of confidence, but that was a big step forward for us.

“There’s no magic wand, but we played some better football and we have to play ourselves back into form.”

The Broncos trailed 7-0 at half-time and the Knights held off a late onslaught to leave Brisbane floundering outside the top eight with a 2-3 record.

Enthusiasm wasn’t Brisbane’s problem last night. Rather, it was a familiar foe - a lack of execution - which hampered their ability to apply pressure in clutch moments.

Exhibit A was Milford, who made a superb 50-metre bust in the 15th minute, only for the ball to inexplicably spew free as he attempted to pass to a trybound support.

Newcastle’s halves controlled the game well.

Bennett has to make some tough decisions on his halves. Milford was dangerous at times in solo moments last night, but he and Nikorima still lack polish in the area of game management.

Indeed, it was an indictment on Brisbane’s shot-callers that they were tactically outplayed by Ponga, a 20-year-old playing just his 14th top-grade game.

Brisbane were lacking in all departments.

With Pearce ably supporting Ponga, Newcastle simply looked more fluent. Pearce’s kicking game was precise and he put the boot into Brisbane just seconds before the break, snapping a clever field goal for a 7-0 half-time lead.

When giant Knights prop Daniel Saifiti stepped past Darius Boyd to crash over in the 55th minute, the Broncos looked gone at 13-0.

Milford kept them alive when he crossed in the 74th minute to whittle the deficit to 15-10, but Brisbane were always fighting an uphill battle.

NEWCASTLE 15 (L Fitzgibbon D Saifiti tries K Ponga 3 goals M Pearce field goal) bt BRISBANE 10 (A Milford C Oates tries J Isaako goal) at McDonald Jones Stadium. Referee: Chris Butler, Chris Sutton. Crowd: 21,969

Originally published as Brisbane crash to second straight loss as Knights down Broncos 15-10