Outgoing Newcastle Knights coach Adam O’Brien plans to keep working as an assistant in NRL

Adam O’Brien insists he does not want his coaching career to end with his Newcastle exit, but says he will return to being an assistant before taking another top job.

O’Brien confirmed on Thursday his six-year tenure at Newcastle was ending this year, after agreeing to a settlement figure to leave the Knights with two seasons left on his contract.

The Newcastle mentor claimed he had come to the decision himself over the past month and had approached club management about the situation.

O’Brien will coach out the club’s final two games against Cronulla and Parramatta and intends to still attend Newcastle’s presentation night before leaving the club.

The Knights coach conceded on Thursday he was running out of speeches to breathe life back into the playing group and had grown concerned about ongoing speculation regarding his future.

In turn, he said he wanted to give the Knights clear air ahead of a crucial 2026 and Dylan Brown’s impending big-money arrival in the halves.

“The one thing that stood out to me is I am a big distraction,” O’Brien said at a press conference on Thursday.

“We would have to win 10 or 15 games straight next year for there to be no speculation.

“If there is one gift I can give the playing group and supporters that pack that stadium every week, it’s to remove that distraction.

“I think that’s the right thing to do ... It’s the right time to give someone else a go.”

The 47-year-old took Newcastle back to the finals for the first time in seven years in his first season as an NRL coach in 2020, after years as an NRL assistant.

He listed the club’s run to the 2023 semi-final as a highlight with the club winning 10 straight games late in the year and Kalyn Ponga taking the Dally M Medal.

But Newcastle have been unable to take the next step since and are fighting to avoid this year’s wooden spoon after a year of poor attack and costly injuries.

O’Brien insisted his passion for coaching had not gone, but indicated it would be some time before he put his hand up to lead another club.

“There is no doubt I need to get some energy levels back, but I know that will come because I still have a deep passion for the game,” O’Brien said.

“I don’t necessarily want to be the lead singer for a long time, I’ll do the back-up vocals for a while.

“Something will come along. I haven’t lost my work ethic and passion. I haven’t lost my care for the playing group, which is why I have ultimately come to this decision.”

O’Brien would not offer a recommendation on a replacement, but said his assistant coach and potential successor Blake Green had fingerprints all over the club’s future planning.

Green is considered the frontrunner to take the job, but the Knights are expected to conduct an extensive search for the next coach.

Former Gold Coast coach Justin Holbrook is considered an option, while former Knights assistant Willie Peters has taken Hull KR to the top of the English Super League.

Brad Arthur is also coaching in England at Leeds, while current Knights assistant Brian McDermott has also been mooted.