The Knights have been warned to “watch their back” by their NRLW rivals in Newcastle and that they will not be winning a third consecutive premiership. The Knights play their first home game of the NRLW season on Thursday night at McDonald Jones Stadium against their bitter rivals, the Sydney Roosters. The Knights are one of the favorites going into the competition because they still have a large portion of their roster from their two consecutive premiership victories. They have Caitlan Johnston-Green, the finest prop in the game, Jesse Southwell, a rising star halfback, and Tamika Upton, the best fullback.
But rivals are adamant an NRLW three-peat won’t come easy.
“They will have to watch their back,” St George Illawarra and New Zealand captain Raecene McGregor said.
“There are going to be teams coming for them, we all want that.
“They’ve got a good squad, but at the end of the day sometimes it’s whoever wants it more.”There will be teams attempting to upset them as they go for a three-peat.” With the inclusion of multi-year contracts, the NRLW has evolved to the point that most squads are essentially unchanged in its eighth season. This should benefit new franchises that joined last season, including as the Wests Tigers, North Queensland, Canberra, and Cronulla. Gold Coast, who advanced to the previous year’s grand final and led the Knights 18–12 with 25 minutes remaining before falling short 24–18, will also gain from this. Tennessee Titans captain Georgia Hale stated, “We’ve definitely reflected on it and cast back.” “In the midst of things, it was disillusionment. However, history has shown that you have to lose one in order to win one. Numerous lessons were learned from 2023. It’s a nice base that we can continue where we left off.”
