Brisbane Broncos to stop Newcastle Knights signing Dane Gagai from playing against them today

WAYNE Bennett's bid to pitch former Brisbane winger Dane Gagai into today's clash with his old club has been abandoned.

Dane Gagai Brisbane Broncos

TALK about kicking your old coach and a club legend when he's down.

Sacked by Brisbane more than three weeks ago after a series of disciplinary breaches, Gagai officially signed with the Knights last Monday for the next two seasons.

He had his first training run with his new club the following day but wasn't named in the 17 to meet the Broncos in Brisbane today despite speculation he might make his debut.

It's understood the only reason he was not in the squad was because the club could not arrange a formal clearance in time.

Knights chief executive Matt Gidley confirmed yesterday the club had been working behind the scenes with Brisbane to have him cleared.

"He's not making the trip," Gidley said yesterday before the Knights left for the airport. "We tried to get things organised. Warren Smiles (operations manager) has been talking to Andrew Gee from the Broncos about it and we've spoken to Ian Schubert from the NRL.

"He basically said we couldn't register him until he received an official release from the Broncos, and that hasn't happened."

Asked if Brisbane had blocked the clearance, Gidley said: "It looks that way. They obviously see the boy as a genuine threat tomorrow and didn't want him playing against them."

Gidley refused to confirm where Gagai would have played.

"That would have obviously been up to Wayne. He was just keen to have him cleared to play for starters," Gidley said.

Gagai's manager Col Davis said he didn't get involved and had left it up to the two clubs to sort out.

"I put him on the plane on Monday and left it up to the clubs," Davis said. "I'm not sure where it's at."

Bennett's bid to use Gagai straight up is not surprising given the form of the team and his opinion of the 21-year-old former Australian Schoolboy star.

"I'm a fan of talent and Dane Gagai is a rare talent," Bennett said.

"The game has done so much for so many young men and I just believe in people, to be honest with you.

"I don't think there's too many of us who haven't made mistakes in life and don't have regrets about decisions we make.

"Dane Gagai doesn't bring a lot of bad habits. We're not talking about drug or alcohol abuse and we are not dealing with a guy who has assaulted anyone. It's a few disciplinary issues and we can work on that with Dane.

"Sometimes a young kid doesn't get it right the first time and some guys need a bit more help than others. (Issuing a lifeline) is something I don't mind doing with Dane because I don't want to see his wonderful talent lost to the game.

"And I don't want him to go through the rest of his life with a lot of regrets because he didn't live the dream."

Bennett, who coached Gagai's father Ray at the Broncos, said it was vital the Knights surrounded Gagai with the right support.

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