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'It's sad': Knights accused of going through the motions
Charles Goodsir • August 18th, 2025 1:05 pm
SEN’s Andrew Voss and Greg Alexander have accused the Newcastle Knights of throwing in the towel on the 2025 season following their 38-4 loss against the North Queensland Cowboys on Sunday.
The Knights suffered their 15th loss of the season in Round 24 and have not won a match in eight weeks. Newcastle have conceded 130 points in their last three matches alone and averaged just over 11 points in that same time frame.
Additionally, Newcastle have equalled the NRL record for most scoreless halves in a season with 11. It has led Voss to question whether there is any motivation for the Knights in the final three weeks of the season.
“It’s a sorry time for the Knights,” Voss said on SEN 1170 Breakfast.
“Teams out of contention and away trips. They can stink the joint up and that’s exactly what the Knights did.
“They compete but at the exact moment where things get hard, they stop.”
Alexander added: “The Knights just offered nothing.
“They can make it look like they are trying but not really.”
Voss replied: “The Knights are trying but they are not trying as they would be if they were in contention for finals.”
Alexander said: “The Knights are just going through the motions.
“I gave up on watching that game. It’s not good.
“At the moment, they are playing as if it’s a training run. It looks like it’s an opposed session.
“That’s all Newcastle are doing at the moment and it’s sad.”
After appearing in four of the last five finals campaigns, Newcastle are now locked in a battle for the wooden spoon against the Gold Coast Titans.
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The Titans were equally as disappointing in Round 24. After leading 10-6 against Cronulla, Gold Coast then conceded 48 unanswered points.
Two late tries added a bit of respectability to the 54-22 scoreline.
“There’s not a whole lot to say about that performance,” Voss said of the Titans.
Alexander added: “I gave the Titans an outside chance.
“I saw that the score was 10-6 and I was saying to myself that they might win.
“An hour later, it was 54-10. What does that mean for the coach Des Hasler?
"The fact they had 50 points put on them, it’s not good.”
The Titans currently sit last on the NRL ladder with 16 competition points and a points differential of -187.
Newcastle are in 16th with 18 competition points and a points differential of -186.
In Round 25, the Titans host the Warriors on Saturday evening whilst the Knights host the Brisbane Broncos on Sunday afternoon.
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