'Absolute shocker': Knights 'haunted' by two bombed tries as Broncos secure finals spot
Brisbane have secured their spot in this year's NRL finals series, downing a struggling Newcastle outfit 46-12 on Sunday afternoon.
It took less than five minutes for the visitors to get on the board at McDonald Jones Stadium after the in-form Kotoni Staggs muscled his way over to score.
The combination between Staggs and Reece Walsh that tormented the Dolphins last weekend was on show again when the Broncos fullback threw a cut-out pass to his centre on last play from inside their own half, setting up a clean break.
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Josiah Karapani extended the lead for Brisbane before the Knights were presented an opportunity to hit directly back when Bradman Best popped an incredible offload to Fletcher Hunt, but the rookie was unable to nail the final pass to Dane Gagai.
Dane Gagai drops it with the line wide open Fox League
"That was a try gone begging, the pass from Hunt on the inside was just not good enough - it was down around his knees," Greg Alexander said on Fox League.
"That's an absolute shocker. You can't ask someone to pick it up off their knees."
Newcastle were made to pay for wasting their chances to get on the board when Walsh found himself in open space and about to score under the sticks.
But instead of planting it down himself with no Knights defenders in sight, the fullback waited for teammate Kobe Hetherington and passed it to him in his 100th game.
Reece Walsh passes to Kobe Hetherington over the line Fox League
Leo Thompson finally put the home side on the board before half time, chasing through a deft grubber kick from Phoenix Crossland and winning the race for the ball.
It was just the third try of Thompson's career in what marked his final home game in Knights colours before his impending move to Canterbury next season.
Deine Mariner crossed after the break to make it a three-score buffer, but the Knights wouldn't go away in front of their devoted fans and ex-players on their annual Old Boys Day when gun centre Bradman Best cleaned up a loose ball in the in-goal area.
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It looked like Newcastle were mounting a genuine comeback when James Schiller broke into open space from inside his own half, setting up a two-on-one scenario with Jakob Arthur and only the opposition fullback in Walsh to beat.
However, for the second time in the game, the ball went to ground with no defenders left in front of the Knights, leaving another try out there.
"They've been haunted by linebreaks and balls that go to ground," Warren Smith said.
Jakob Arthur drops the ball in open space Nine
Moments later, Payne Haas found his way over the tryline, making for an ugly 12-point turnaround and putting to bed any hope of a Knights victory.
Walsh continued a stellar afternoon with 14 minutes remaining, racing past a host of Knights players including Gagai to score.
"He is just too quick and he can embarrass defenders, making it look like they are not in his league at all," Panthers legend Alexander quipped on commentary.
Gehamat Shibasaki joined the try-scoring list for the Broncos two minutes later before Mariner made it a double for the afternoon in the 74th minute.
Jordan Riki put the icing on the cake with three minutes left in what ended up becoming a dismal outing for the Knights in front of their rusted-on supporters.
Shibasaki was sin binned in the final minute of the game for a professional foul, but that moment did little to dampen the excitement in Ben Hunt's milestone 350th game.
