Knights overcome Dolphins despite Dane Gagai sin-bin, forward pass controversy

The Knights salvaged a 26-20 win over the Dolphins in Perth on Saturday despite conceding two tries when Dane Gagai was in the sin bin and having a try disallowed by a dubious refereeing decision.

Locked up with the Dolphins at 20-20 with five minutes remaining, the Knights appeared to score a go-ahead try through Jayden Brailey on the back of a flashy passage of play that included a slick Kalyn Ponga flick pass.

But referee Grant Atkins disallowed the try at HBF Park, ruling James Schiller had thrown the ball forward when passing to Brailey.

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Knights players remonstrated with the referee and boos rung throughout the venue.

Fortunately for the Knights faithful and their flagging season, they returned to Dolphins territory with a minute left on the clock and scored a try through Brodie Jones.

Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow failed to diffuse a Phoenix Crossland bomb and the Knights pounced.

Bradman Best sliced through a broken Dolphins defensive line and linked with Jones, who planted the ball with an outstretched left arm as Connelly Lemuelu tried unsuccessfully to stop him.

Gagai converted to seal a 26-20 win as the Knights breathed much-needed life into their flagging season.

Earlier in the second half, Gagai was sent to the sin bin for holding his opposing centre, Herbie Farnworth, as the gun Dolphin tried to give support to a runaway Jake Averillo on the left edge.

Stand-in skipper Isaiya Katoa submitted a captain's challenge and the Bunker ruled in his favour.

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Jamayne Isaako and Tabuai-Fidow scored a try each during Gagai's 10 minutes off the field to put the Dolphins ahead 20-16.

But the Knights drew level at 20-20 when Best swooped on a Ponga grubber just after the hour mark, before Jones' four-pointer gave Adam O'Brien's men the win.

"I disagree with the decision," O'Brien said of the referee disallowing the Brailey try because of Schiller's pass.

"But I was really proud of the players.

"We had to contend with a fair bit tonight, with Gags [Gagai] going to the bin, and they're an in-form footy team. They've got their stuff in order, clearly, with the amount of points they've been able to score.

"I didn't think it was forward — I thought it was a very entertaining try for the people here."

Newcastle lost five-eighth Fletcher Sharpe to a failed head injury assessment in the 48th minute, with the No.6 suffering a concussion when he was tackled by Jeremy Marshall-King.

Sharpe took a run from dummy-half, went for a chip and chase, and regathered the ball, before nosediving as Marshall-King tackled him from behind.

In the 27th minute of the Perth clash, the Dolphins lost winger Jack Bostock, the 2024 Dally M Rookie of the Year, to a suspected ACL rupture.

The Knights will face the Raiders in Newcastle next Friday night, while the Dolphins will take on the Rabbitohs at Suncorp Stadium next Saturday night.