Nathan Ross caught up with a number of the reserve grade Newcastle Knights in the shed after their tightly contested game which saw the Knights beaten by just two points by the New Zealand Warriors
Matt Soper-Lawler scored two tries on the left edge, and despite the disappointing loss, was happy with the way the Knights worked as a cohesive unit throughout the match.
“There were a few good kicks and Fitzy (Lachlan Fitzgibbon) set me up a couple of times which was good,” he said.
The 19-year-old winger was skillful in the way he collected a number of high balls to score points for the team.
“I had my eye on the ball the whole time and luckily it landed in my arms,” he said.
Lachlan Fitzgibbon returned to the reserve grade team with valuable first grade experience under his belt.
“It’s good to be back playing 80 minutes out on the edge,” he said.
“The players around me were creating space for myself and the boys were backing up on the inside and the outside, which was good."
Meanwhile Ryan Walker joined the team after playing with the Cessnock Goannas in the local Newcastle competition.
“It was pretty quick. I felt alright for most parts but I think after a couple of games I’ll get the hang of it,” he said after the match.
“The speed of the play (was the biggest difference), they were getting at us pretty quick and there was no time to sit back on your heels.”
While the Knights always expected a challenge from the top of the table Warriors, Luke Yates thought the Knights performed well and held their own during the game.
“We said from the start, we aren’t going great as a team but they are coming second, so…if we fail, then we are still having a crack and we ended up coming two points from the top two side," he said.
"(Dylan) Phythian at the end tried to kick a 40-20 with a minute to go and was having a crack.
“If it came off we probably would have got the win.
“I’m happy with how the boys went and am looking forward to next week.”
