Ponga’s future under a cloud after nasty KO against Tigers

Kalyn Ponga’s immediate playing future is in limbo after the Newcastle superstar suffered yet another nasty concussion on a Sunday afternoon which also saw Knights teammate Jacob Saifiti sent off for an ugly high tackle on Jake Simpkin.

While the Knights held on for a 14-12 victory to keep the Wests Tigers winless to start the season, it may have come at a price with two of their best players expected to be unavailable over the coming weeks.

Saifiti is expected to feel the wrath of the match review committee when charges are handed down on Monday morning after a high tackle that floored the young Tigers dummy half.

While Saifiti left the field with 15 minutes on the clock, reducing his team to 12 men for the remainder of the match, Ponga’s afternoon ended less than two minutes into the game.

He was knocked out attempting to tackle Wests Tigers back-rower Asu Kepaoa in front of a packed crowd at Leichhardt Oval.

There are now grave concerns over Ponga’s short-term future, with the Knights to come under pressure to give the Queensland Origin star an extended break.

“It’s too early to say,” O’Brien said while refusing to be drawn into the long-term outlook for Ponga.

“We’ll just follow the protocols. He’s had the summer off, had extended breaks last year. We’ll just follow the guidelines. He obviously won’t play next week. We have a five-day turnaround.”

Newcastle halfback Jackson Hastings was embroiled in a heated exchange with his former club after full-time and had to be separated by security.

The Herald has learned that Hastings went over to former teammate Tommy Talau after full time to apologise for a tackle on the centre that broke his nose and ruled him out of the rest of the game. Talau wasn’t in the mood to hear it, firing off some harsh words to the ex-Tigers playmaker.

Tigers recruit David Klemmer, who joined the club from the Knights over the summer, leapt to the defence of his new teammate. Security and Knights head of football Peter Parr had to separate the players.

Ponga’s head knock comes a week after he was embroiled in another concussion-related drama when he was pulled from the field in the final stages of his team’s match against the Warriors last week.

The Knights were critical of the independent doctor’s decision to order Ponga from the field for an assessment – and in the process ending his evening.

It’s the fourth time in 10 months Ponga has left the field suffering a concussion and now faces an extended break on the sidelines.

Kalyn Ponga suffered a heavy head knock just 90 minutes into the game against Wests Tigers.Credit: Getty

The last time Ponga was concussed was against the Roosters last July, hitting the deck after a high tackle from prop Matt Lodge. At the time it was his third concussion in six weeks.

Ponga didn’t return for the rest of the season, with Newcastle opting against playing him in the final rounds when they were out of finals contention.

Under NRL rules, two concussions in one season requires a player to visit a neuro specialist before returning to play. The Knights are expected to err on the side of caution with their star playmaker.

In 2022 Ponga left the field for five head injury assessments (HIA), failing to return to the paddock on three occasions.

Ponga found himself in the headlines when he was filmed coming out of a toilet cubicle at Newcastle night spot with teammate Kurt Mann last year.

Ponga recently addressed the incident, revealing he wasn’t aware the impact of alcohol had on concussions.

“To be honest I didn’t know the effects alcohol could have on concussion. There is so much about concussion that people don’t know. I look back on that time and that period I was going through the concussions, and they do have an effect on you,” Ponga said before the start of the season.

“Moving forward, there have been lots of lessons learned and that is one of them. I think I have recovered quite well. I haven’t had to think about the concussions to be honest. I have gone through the pre-season and done all the contact. My head feels safe. I want to put that in the past. It is a part of last year that hurt me a lot.”

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