After being snubbed by the Knights and forced to move interstate to fulfill his dream of debuting in the NRL, Newcastle junior Zac Hosking wants a second chance to prove he can play top grade footy in his home town.
But the 25-year-old backrower's hopes may already be dashed with suggestions the Knights will struggle to find a place for him in their top 30 roster next season.
Only a fortnight ago, Hosking, who was the Knights' NSW Cup player of the year last season, made his NRL debut for the Broncos at Suncorp Stadium.
In front of almost 30,000 fans including a host of family and friends, he was one of Brisbane's best in a win over the Dragons. He backed that up a week later in the side's win over the Gold Coast before being the Broncos' 18th man on Thursday night against the Eels.
His breakout games came after he left Newcastle at the end of last season to join Q. Cup club Wynnum Manly with the added lure of a pre-season train-and-trial deal with the Broncos.
But with no room to move in Brisbane's salary cap for 2023, Hosking is aware he will have to move again if he's to give himself a realistic chance of trying to establish himself in the NRL.
"I sat down with Ben Ikin [Broncos head of football] last week and had an honest conversation," Hosking said. "He was really complimentary but told me the squad was already virtually done for next year. So it's about looking at my options now."
There's been some interest from rival clubs but Hosking's preference is a return to Newcastle.
"I'd love to come back...I want to come home," he told us. "I grew up in Newcastle loving the Knights and always wanting to play for them. Some of my best mates are still there and my partner misses home. But I don't really know if it's a realistic chance or not."
While the Knights will lose Mitch Barnett next season, working against Hosking is the fact the club has already signed backrow options Adam Elliott and Jake Hetherington and are also trying to lure young Wigan backrower Kai Pierce-Paul for next season.
They also have Tyson Frizell, Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Brodie Jones and Jack Johns on their books, all specialist backrowers.
Tex's back-pocket hit
The Knights' insistence that Tex Hoy see out the season before joining English Super League club Hull for the next two years has proved costly for the utility back.
We've been told Hull were prepared to pay Hoy around $100,000 just for the remainder of this year if he could secure an early release. Given he is only on a Knights development contract worth around $50,000, it's little wonder he was keen to make the move straight away.
Meanwhile, Hoy's father Matt, a former professional surfing champion, admitted to having mixed feelings about his son's move.
"I'm stoked for him that he's got this opportunity in England and I think it's going to be good for him and his footy to go over there," Hoy snr said. "But at the same time, I'm disappointed to see him leave the Knights.
"It's always been a dream of his to play for his home town club. Hopefully, he comes home an even better player when he's finished over there and gets another crack here."
Bubba's back
If work commitments in the mines didn't get in the way, highly regarded coach Ian Bourke would be coaching the Knights' NSW Cup side right now.
Instead, he's doing some great things with a rebuilding Lakes United in the local comp. But 'Bubba' hasn't been lost to the Knights altogether. He's just agreed to help out coach Ron Griffiths with the club's NRLW squad.
Along came Jones
Have the Knights unearthed a future long-term hooking option in local junior Riley Jones? Jones has been getting some rave reviews since being shifted from the halves into the No.9 jumper in the club's Jersey Flegg side.
The last Knights player to make a similar switch finished up a club legend.
Hastings a no-go zone
While there are those who believe he is just the type of player the Knights need to steer the ship around in the halves next season, you can scratch Wests Tigers playmaker Jackson Hastings off the list of possible recruits.
It was reported more than a month ago when Michael Maguire was sacked as Tigers coach that the Knights had expressed an interest in Hastings if he sought a release from the club.
But if they did, the interest was fleeting. While his name may have come up in discussions, he was apparently never seriously considered, presumably because of his chequered history at other clubs.
Baz's Best
Kalyn Ponga was the big mover but David Klemmer extended his lead in Baz's Best player of the year competition after the Knights' big loss to Manly in round 18.
The Knights captain was easily his side's best while Jayden Brailey polled his first points of the season in just his second game back.
Rd 18: Knights v Manly
3 Kalyn Ponga 2 Jayden Brailey 1 David Klemmer
Progress points: 17 David Klemmer 14 Dom Young 10 Kalyn Ponga 7 Tyson Frizell, Mitch Barnett, Kurt Mann, Anthony Milford 5 Chris Randall, Edrick Lee 4 Dane Gagai, Jake Clifford 2 Jayden Brailey, Tex Hoy, Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Enari Tuala 1 Bradman Best.
