The Roosters have overwhelmed the Knights 18-16 on the again of a Joey Manu masterclass in an epic fullback duel with Kalyn Ponga at McDonald Jones Stadium.
The Roosters have suffered a serious blow with reviews Luke Keary suffered a fractured jaw of their gutsy 18-16 win over Newcastle that has breathed new life into their season.
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The veteran five-eighth was attempting to make a canopy deal with on Knights speedster Dom Young when he copped a stray boot to the face.
Keary left the sphere instantly and went straight up the tunnel with the membership fearing the three-time premiership winner had fractured his jaw within the contact and will miss as much as eight weeks.
It could be a catastrophic blow for a aspect that has scored the fewest factors this season and is battling to remain in contact with the highest eight.
There was no suggestion that Keary had suffered any concussion signs given his historical past of head knocks, however he appeared in discomfort within the sheds earlier than he was despatched for scans.
It’s one other setback for the Roosters who’re already with out injured stars Sam Walker and Brandon Smith, however a minimum of they returned to profitable wins after they survived a livid second-half comeback to carry on by two factors.
BIG HITS
JOSEPH IS THE MANU
Roosters coach Trent Robinson faces a range headache subsequent week after Joseph Manu ran for extra metres than any participant has produced in a recreation this season in a shocking return to fullback.
There is little doubt that skipper James Tedesco will slot straight again in if he will get by way of Origin, however Robinson should now resolve if he shifts Manu to five-eighth once more or if he picks him at proper centre.
Manu was ineffective within the halves this season the place he’d scored only one attempt to had one help, however Keary’s damage means he may need to return there subsequent week.
The Golden Boot winner confirmed he could in truth be one of the best fullback on this planet after placing up absurd numbers in Newcastle.
He had 178 metres, 5 deal with busts and 4 offloads within the first half alone, ending with a whopping 295 metres and an outstanding solo attempt when his staff wanted him most.
“I love running the ball and the freedom the fullback position gives you,” he stated after the sport.
“It was nice to play there.”
KNIGHTMARE
There would have been a quiet optimism within the Hunter after the Knights pushed premiership heavyweights the Broncos all the best way final week, however the dream rapidly grew to become a nightmare in what turned out to be a horror present.
A giant crowd was let down by one of many worst performances by Newcastle this season towards a patchwork Roosters aspect that was there to be overwhelmed.
The Knights gave their loyal followers false hope when Dom Young scored a fortuitous early attempt however that was the one first-half spotlight as they discovered new methods to implode.
Nothing summed up the afternoon fairly like a bombed attempt within the second half when Kalyn Ponga broke by way of, just for his teammates to someway give you a string of stunning passes that noticed the ball dribble into contact.
Ponga had a terrific recreation on the again however he can’t do all the pieces for this staff.
PONGA’S LONE HAND AS KNIGHTS RUE MISSED CHANCES
The Knights are making a behavior of shut losses this season and have been under their finest towards the Roosters, however Kalyn Ponga practically willed his aspect to victory on his personal.
In an epic duel with reverse quantity Manu, Ponga completed with 172 metres, seven deal with busts, three offloads, two linebreaks, one linebreak help and one attempt help.
Ponga has been in purple scorching type for the Knights since switching again to fullback and he appeared harmful each time he touched the ball towards the Roosters.
Greg Alexander believes the Knights took the loss so laborious as a result of they need to have received towards a depleted Roosters outfit every week after happening to the Broncos regardless of being the higher staff.
“You can see how shattered Newcastle are,” Alexander stated.
“They have been very good at home this season. They have won four out of six at home. They go down in a thriller.
“It was 18-6 at half-time. They got it back to 18-16, but they just couldn’t land that final killer blow.
“They now sit five wins and one draw and that is a long way behind a lot of the teams around that top eight and they are drifting down to the bottom of the competition ladder now.”
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