Nervous Green gets off to a winning start

Amid a tumultuous week that ended with a seventh club debut of his career, new Knight Blake Green was wondering what instruction coach Adam O'Brien would provide.

"To be honest he didn't really give me any because he knew I had a lot going on this week," Green said after he had a telling hand in the 44-4 win over the Wests Tigers at McDonald Jones Stadium.

"It's been an emotional week for me ... [the Warriors] have been a big part of my life for the last three years."

After 55 games with the Warriors, Green is now with Newcastle and played his 173rd NRL game in round 13 after playing the previous 12 under two different coaches with the New Zealand club.

Green and wife Sarah had to farewell players and their families and move out of the Terrigal hotel base camp on Monday night, move into another hotel on Wednesday an hour up the Pacific Highway in Newcastle, then into an apartment on Thursday. He trained on Friday and played on Saturday.

"My young bloke started school [here in Australia] so we've been away from our house [in Auckland] for a long time. My little girl has been in daycare and I've just had to pack them up and move without a whole heap of notice.

"I loved the club [Warriors] and there's plenty of people there I had a great relationship with."

As experienced as Green is with stints at the Eels, Sharks, Bulldogs, Storm, Sea Eagles and Warriors, pulling on the Knights jersey brought more emotion.

"I was really nervous today. I only had the one session on the field for about 40 minutes as they had a short turnaround so I didn't get a whole heap of time with everyone," Green said.

"But the group, everyone at the club, has been fantastic."

The win was the perfect tonic for when the Warriors hierarchy had told him he was not in their plans for 2021.

"It's hard but I think this is the best opportunity for me so I jumped it," he said.

"I just turned my phone off and put it to the side, and focused on what was real. I said 'Thank you' to everyone, packed up, left the next day and tried to be the best I could for my new team.

"I tried to put all the other junk to the side and just get through tonight. I've got a couple of days off now so I can just relax."

O'Brien can do the same. He knew what to expect from Green but it was still a pleasure to see him slip seamlessly into the halves with Mitchell Pearce.

"There's a reason why he's been at so many clubs because he gets his job done everywhere he goes," O'Brien said in explaining the 33-year-old's popularity.

"He's just a really easy guy to like. Already I can see him and Mitch at training this week looking like the perfect couple.

"He understands his role, doesn't overdo it and is just a good guy to have around."

The future is still unclear. Green has been signed for the remainder of the season.

"To be honest I thought it was a win-win decision for both parties. [The Warriors] got to promote from within and start the process of their club moving forward," Green said.

"I've got no hard feelings about it. That's just professional sport these days."