NRL Wests Tigers v Knights: Newcastle score twice in second half to spoil Jarome Luai party

The Wests Tigers’ Jarome Luai era has began in heartbreak, beaten by a matter of millimetres in a 10-8 defeat to Newcastle at Campbelltown Stadium.

After leading 8-0 for the majority of Friday night, the Tigers held a slim two-point advantage until Greg Marzhew broke the hosts with 13 minutes to play.

With the Knights on the attack after a Jack Cogger bust, Marzhew collected a wayward Bradman Best pass within millimetres of the sideline.

The Newcastle winger then nearly touched the white stripe again, before changing direction and barging over to give them a 10-8 lead.

Victory will have come as a significant relief to the Knights, who were scrappy with ball in hand and knocked back a penalty goal to level at 8-8 seven minutes earlier.

Much has been made of Luai’s arrival in Tiger Town, with the four-time premiership winner arguably the biggest-name recruit in the club’s history.

Missing hooker Api Koroisau to suspension and fullback Jahream Bula to a shoulder injury, Luai played high energy and tempo as the clear leader of the attack.

The halfback had his hands all over the Tigers’ only try through a fending Jeral Skelton when he spread the ball left after an Alex Twal offload.

And while all eyes were on Luai, fellow recruit Terrell May also proved there is more than just one man able to turn the Tigers around this year.

The discarded Sydney Roosters forward played the first 54 minutes of the game unchanged, and finished with 175 run metres and five offloads.

The Tigers’ defence also showed signs of improvement, turning the Knights away repeatedly after ranking last in 2024 and leaking an average of 31 points per game.

Despite all that, it was still the same old result for the three-time reigning wooden-spooners.

Newcastle were at times their own worst enemies, bombing multiple first-half chances with balls into touch and errors close to the line.

But when it mattered most, Newcastle’s key players were able to stand up.

Kalyn Ponga got his foot back into the in-goal to claim a 20m tap when a Luai bomb went marginally long, changing the momentum of the game in the second half.

From the ensuing set Dylan Lucas stepped past several Tigers defenders to make a 30m break, before Fletcher Sharpe went over from dummy-half next play.

And when they trailed 8-6 with 13 minutes to go, it was Cogger’ break out of his own end that put the Knights on the attack before Marzhew’s try.

For the Tigers, they will get Koroisau back from suspension against Parramatta next week, with the signs of a rebuild clearly evident in Luai’s first 80 minutes.