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Knights v Roosters: Injury forces Saifiti swap; Smith into halves

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The Knights were left to rue the one that got away in Brisbane in Round 15 but will have taken plenty of positives out of their narrow loss to the table-topping Broncos.

With Kalyn Ponga at his electric best, the Knights led 20-12 lead with 12 minutes to play and were on track for just their second away win of the of the season before the Broncos conjured two late tries to escape 24-20.

The loss leaves the Knights one win outside the top eight and one point behind the Roosters, who are coming off a demoralising loss to the Panthers on home soil at Allianz Stadium.

Despite boasting a star-studded backline the Roosters have been held to 12 points or less in five of their past nine games, while their defence has also been a concern across that period, giving up 222 points at 24.6 per game.

The last time these sides clashed it was the Roosters storming to a 42-12 win at McDonald Jones Stadium in Round 19 last year - part of an eight-game winning streak that catapulted Trent Robinson's men into the finals in sixth place, where they were bundled out by the Rabbitohs.

If the Roosters are to be part of the finals action for a seventh straight season they need to find some consistency and rediscover the hard edge that has made them such a formidable force for the past decade.

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Team News

Knights: No further late changes after Daniel Saifiti dropped out on Friday with a sternum injury, meaning his Jacob starts in the front-row and Brodie Jones joins the bench. The return of back-rower Lachlan Fitzgibbon from a calf injury is timely with Tyson Frizell away on NSW Origin duty. The only other change to the side that pushed the Broncos to the limit sees Enari Tuala come in on the wing for Greg Marzhew, who was not considered for selection due to failing to meet team standards after he missed the team bus the day after the loss to the Broncos. 

Roosters: Will take the field as named on Tuesday, with Joey Manu going to fullback in the absence of skipper James Tedesco who is on Origin duty. Luke Keary shifts to five-eighth and youngster Sandon Smith is the new halfback. Centre Billy Smith is back on deck so Drew Hutchison reverts back to the bench.

Team Lists

Backs

  • Fullback for Knights is number 1 Kalyn Ponga
    Fullback for Roosters is number 1 Joseph Manu
  • Winger for Knights is number 2 Dominic Young
    Winger for Roosters is number 2 Daniel Tupou
  • Centre for Knights is number 3 Dane Gagai
    Centre for Roosters is number 3 Corey Allan
  • Centre for Knights is number 4 Bradman Best
    Centre for Roosters is number 4 Billy Smith
  • Winger for Knights is number 5 Enari Tuala
    Winger for Roosters is number 5 Fetalaiga Pauga
  • Five-Eighth for Knights is number 6 Tyson Gamble
    Five-Eighth for Roosters is number 6 Luke Keary
  • Halfback for Knights is number 7 Jackson Hastings
    Halfback for Roosters is number 7 Sandon Smith

Forwards

  • Prop for Knights is number 10 Leo Thompson
    Prop for Roosters is number 8 Jared  Waerea-Hargreaves
  • Hooker for Knights is number 9 Phoenix Crossland
    Hooker for Roosters is number 9 Jake Turpin
  • Prop for Knights is number 15 Jacob Saifiti
    Prop for Roosters is number 10 Nat Butcher
  • 2nd Row for Knights is number 11 Dylan Lucas
    2nd Row for Roosters is number 11 Egan Butcher
  • 2nd Row for Knights is number 12 Lachlan Fitzgibbon
    2nd Row for Roosters is number 12 Sitili Tupouniua
  • Lock for Knights is number 13 Adam Elliott
    Lock for Roosters is number 13 Naufahu Whyte

Interchange

  • Interchange for Knights is number 14 Kurt Mann
    Interchange for Roosters is number 14 Drew Hutchison
  • Interchange for Knights is number 16 Jack Hetherington
    Interchange for Roosters is number 15 Nathan Brown
  • Interchange for Knights is number 17 Mat Croker
    Interchange for Roosters is number 16 Terrell May
  • Interchange for Knights is number 20 Brodie Jones
    Interchange for Roosters is number 17 Angus Crichton

Reserves

  • Replacement for Knights is number 19 Simi Sasagi
    Replacement for Roosters is number 19 Zach Dockar-Clay 

Match Officials

  • Referee: Grant Atkins
  • Touch Judge: Belinda Sharpe
  • Touch Judge: Todd Smith
  • Senior Review Official: Matt Noyen

Last updated:

Stat Attack

  • Centres Dane Gagai and Bradman Best have come up with 17 try assists between them this season.
  • The Knights (57) and Roosters (52) both sit in the bottom four for line breaks in 2023. The Rabbitohs lead the NRL with 87 line breaks.
  • The Roosters' average of 16.15 points per game is the lowest in the NRL. The Bulldogs (17.35ppg) and Wests Tigers (17.92ppg) are 15th and 16th on the list.
  • The Knights have won four of their past five games at McDonald Jones Stadium.
  • The Roosters have won 11 of their past 13 games against the Knights.
  • Knights winger Dominic Young has scored seven tries in his past six games.
  • Roosters five-eighth Luke Keary has scored eight tries in his past 10 games against the Knights.
  • The Knights will be aiming to notch the 400th win in the club’s history

Stats supplied by David Middleton, League Information Services, author of the 

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