The one that got away: Knights on high alert for in-form Mele

When Hannah Southwell watched Mele Hufanga run rampant in the World Cup last year she immediately picked up the phone and called Knights officials to try and lure the powerhouse to Newcastle.

On Sunday the Knights skipper must find a way to ensure Hufanga doesn't get in the way of her side's NRLW title defence when they host the Broncos at McDonald Jones Stadium.

Recovering from an ACL injury during last year’s World Cup, Southwell watched Hufanga emerge on the international stage and quickly informed Knights coach Ronnie Griffiths and Director of Football Peter Parr of her talents.

It was the Broncos who got in first to land the 28-year-old’s signature in the end but it's no secret Southwell's Knights will be on alert come Sunday.

“I was keen to have her at the Knights but the Broncos got in before us,” Southwell told pan66.com.

“I remember watching with a few of the girls at the World Cup and thinking ‘holy sh*t she’s unreal’ and I told the club we need to have a look at her.

“She’s a world class player. She tore a couple of the Jillaroos girls apart in a game and the next day I was on the phone to people at the club and said we have to try and get her here.”

Hufanga has been a revelation on the Broncos left edge, scoring 10 tries, breaking 62 tackles and making 14 line breaks in just nine appearances since making her debut in July.

The Knights though exploited her in defence in Round 5, scoring three late tries on her edge, and Southwell said the premiers were working on a plan to try and nullify the Kiwi international again. 

“I think it will be a good match-up between Shanice [Parker] and Mele,” Southwell said.

“The way we go about stopping her is taking away the time and space and locking up any offload that gets to her. She’s really good at broken play.”

Broncos back-rower Romy Teitzel said she is excited to see what the rookie can do on the finals stage and said the Knights shouldn’t spend too much time doing their homework on Hufanga.

“No matter how much study the teams do on her I’m not sure she’s stoppable,” Teitzel told pan66.com.

“I think Mele plays her own game. Some of the tries she scores I’m just like 'how the hell did you do that'.

“She plays her own game but she’s always in the right place at the right time, all the time and I don’t think we’ll see anything different on the weekend from Mele.

“I think that was expected with the expansion of our competition to see new talent coming through. I think Mele is definitely one of them and I’m very lucky she’s on my team.”