{"id":470339,"date":"2026-02-10T09:53:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-10T09:53:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/470339\/"},"modified":"2026-02-10T09:53:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-10T09:53:10","slug":"newcastle-knights-captain-excited-at-prospect-of-playing-with-brisbane-broncos-star-reece-walsh-after-new-nrl-rules-apply-to-state-of-origin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/470339\/","title":{"rendered":"Newcastle Knights captain excited at prospect of playing with Brisbane Broncos star Reece Walsh after new NRL rules apply to State of Origin"},"content":{"rendered":"

Now there\u2019s an opportunity for both to be picked – and potentially be on the field at the same time.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving the option as a coach and depending on how the game\u2019s unfolding, having an optional player – either a forward or back \u2026 it gives you a bit more flexibility,\u201d Ponga, who has played for Queensland 10 times since debuting in 2018, said.<\/p>\n

\"Reece<\/p>\n

Reece Walsh in action for Queensland.Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is pretty exciting. I want to be there, I always want to be in that arena. If we\u2019re playing good footy at the time and there\u2019s a possibility for us to both be on the field, obviously it\u2019s going to be exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Maroons will have the opportunity to pick a side that includes attacking weapons such as Ponga or Brisbane star Ezra Mam if they are chasing points, or a defensive specialist if they are trying to protect a lead.<\/p>\n

Likewise, NSW could turn to an interchange bench that includes the likes of Canberra half Ethan Strange or Rabbitoh Latrell Mitchell as injury cover or strike weapons once the game opens up.<\/p>\n

Loading<\/p>\n

Ponga will be pressing his claims in a Newcastle team that has undergone major changes. Coach Justin Holbrook has replaced Adam O\u2019Brien, while the arrival of former Parramatta playmaker Dylan Brown gives the spine a new focal point.<\/p>\n

There will be intense pressure on Ponga and Brown – paid about $2.6 million per annum between them – to turn around the fortunes of the wooden spooners. However, both have a reputation as laid-back figures unaffected by outside noise.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been my roomie when we had a camp, and he makes me stressed, so I can imagine how I must have made people feel back in the day,\u201d Ponga quipped.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I\u2019ve gotten better over the years, but definitely he is a bit like me \u2026 a pretty cruisy, calm sort of character, but he competes on everything. He\u2019s pretty hungry and he\u2019s elite. To be honest, he\u2019s been awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ponga conceded it was up to himself and Brown to provide the Knights with bang for their back.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe both need to step up,\u201d he said. \u201cAs the spine members in general, it\u2019s our job to get the boys around the park and also ice opportunities, be in big moments.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the same time it is a privilege to be in that position to represent this club and have that responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Now there\u2019s an opportunity for both to be picked – and potentially be on the field at the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":470340,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-470339","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/470339","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=470339"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/470339\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/470340"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=470339"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=470339"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=470339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}