KNIGHTS coach Wayne Bennett is expected to name an almost full-strength team for their pre-season trial against Penrith at Port Macquarie on Saturday night.
None of Newcastle’s top 25 were used in their 32-0 victory against the Newcastle Rugby League representative squad in a NSW Cup trial at Tomaree on Friday.
But Bennett will rotate most of his senior players for the game against the Panthers.
It is understood prop Kade Snowden, who made his NRL All Stars debut in their 36-28 victory over the Indigenous All Stars at Skilled Park on Saturday, will make his first appearance for the Knights since leaving the club for Cronulla at the end of 2007.
Snowden ran 11 times for 85 metres and made 16 tackles for the NRL All Stars, according to NRL Stats.
Captain Kurt Gidley, who had knee and ankle surgery at the end of last season, and Australian winger Aku Uate, who had a minor knee operation after the Four Nations tournament in November, have been training with the full-time squad and are likely to be considered to play against Penrith.
High-profile recruit Darius Boyd is tipped to make his Newcastle debut, and Knights 2001 grand final heroes Danny Buderus and Timana Tahu will again turn out for the club where they began their illustrious careers.
Bennett will finalise his selections when he returns to training tomorrow after being in camp with the NRL All Stars for the past week.
In his absence, Knights assistant coach Rick Stone and NSW Cup coach Rip Taylor were in charge for the trial at Tomaree last Friday.
Stone said some of the fringe first-graders who played against the Newcastle Rugby League side would be included in the first-grade squad for the game against the Panthers, but most would play in a NSW Cup trial against Windsor at Peacock Field, Toronto, on Sunday, or for the club’s National Youth Cup (under-20) side.
‘‘That team will get dispersed a little bit. Some will push up into the NRL, some will go back to the NYC and some will stay around the NSW Cup,’’ Stone said.
‘‘They’ve got another trial against Windsor, and our NYC boys play Penrith, both out at Toronto next Sunday.’’
Stone was particularly pleased with the performance of the club’s summer triallists, who combined to score five tries last Friday.
‘‘I think our part-time squad who played in the second half handled it quite well. We were a little bit impatient in the first half,’’ he said. ‘‘We probably just forced the footy a little bit and I think we made eight errors in the first half, which didn’t help our cause.
‘‘We possibly could have done a bit better than that but overall the defence was tidy, our attitude was good.
‘‘I really appreciate the Newcastle rep side getting out a side this early in the year because it’s a long way away from their competition starting and they basically played two 17-man teams there, which is a tough gig.’’
Stone said Fijian hopefuls Watisoni Votu and Simione Sawene would play against Windsor on Sunday with a view to the Knights retaining the rugby union converts in the club’s NSW Cup ranks for the rest of the season.
Votu, who played on the left wing and scored the second of Newcastle’s eight tries, captained Fiji at the World Sevens in Dubai in December, and 20-year-old Sawene represented Fiji at the IRB World Junior Championship in Italy last June.
‘‘Ideally, they’ll probably both start in our NSW Cup crew somewhere and progress from there. They’re not going to be ready for the NRL on day dot but they’re a work in progress,’’ Stone said.
Email a friend