‘Knights’ Struggling Offence Faces Scrutiny as Adam O’Brien Gives Candid Review After Defeat’

Adam O’Brien, coach of the Newcastle Knights, has acknowledged that a few of his players are struggling with a case of the “yips”, while Paul Gallen labelled the team’s performance as deplorable after their 20-6 defeat to the Tigers.

Playing in front of their home supporters, the Knights’ attack fell flat, and they were hindered by a series of mistakes throughout the match.

Despite the hefty scoreline, the statistics tell a similar story, with Newcastle registering 15 errors compared to the Tigers’ 14. Furthermore, Newcastle missed 31 tackles, one more than their opponents, yet Benji Marshall’s team capitalised on the Knights’ shortcomings effectively.

According to Gallen, “The Knights were dismal; with 25,000 fans watching, their performance was terrible.”

He continued, “Some of their defensive lapses were shocking, but it was the way they turned the ball over so easily that was unacceptable… overall, they were quite poor.”

O’Brien candidly addressed the media after the match, stating, “The truth is, we simply weren’t good enough. We made it increasingly difficult for ourselves with the number of play one errors, and we have plenty of room for improvement.”

The Knights were on the verge of playing two consecutive games without registering a score until Fletcher Sharpe managed to cross the line in the dying seconds.

Catch the 2025 NRL premiership live and for free on Nine and 9Now.

His try brought the team’s total to just 12 points across three matches.

O’Brien believes the attacking struggles stem from a mix of factors. “I don’t reckon many teams have their act together at this point, but my focus is on us,” he remarked.

“There’s a blend of issues affecting our attack. Concentration errors are putting us under pressure and can lead to the yips for some players. We completed our first nine sets successfully, but didn’t throw the ball around much in that time. I think fatigue was a factor, and we didn’t fire any bullets because we’ve been so fixated on maintaining a high completion rate — we need to find the right balance.”

O’Brien also indicated that he doesn’t expect many players to return for next week’s clash against the Sharks, with Tyson Gamble, Adam Elliott, Jack Hetherington, Jacob Saifiti, and Dylan Lucas ruled out.

This resulted in Phoenix Crossland stepping into the halves, while Matt Arthur took a spot on the bench as hooker. Tyrone Thompson and Kyle McCarthy were also introduced into the squad.

Although the Knights fielded a youthful lineup, it was their more experienced players who committed the majority of errors. Greg Marzhew was accountable for four, while Kalyn Ponga had two and Crossland made three. Dane Gagai was even sin-binned for his involvement in a melee.

“The responsibility doesn’t lie solely on the younger players; it’s a collective issue, affecting everyone—including myself,” O’Brien commented.

“The errors became a bit contagious, which is a sign of frustration and pressure.”