Newcastle's James McManus goes over to score in the corner against Wests Tigers. Picture: Gregg Porteous Source: The Australian
MAYBE the problem wasn't Tim Sheens after all.
The Wests Tigers arrived at Hunter Stadium last night with high expectations after an off-season under rookie coach Mick Potter. They departed a battered and badly beaten outfit.
Potter, having replaced the long-serving Sheens in the off-season, knew he had some work to do but this was an eye-opener.
The Tigers were blown away 42-10 in a performance so inept they look closer to the wooden spoon than the top eight.
In the Tigers' defence, there were some extenuating circumstances. They took to the field only days after attending the funeral of teammate Mosese Fotuaika - they wore jumpers embroidered with his name and number.
They also came up against a red-hot Newcastle outfit, led by flying winger Akuila Uate.
Despite all that, the Tigers managed to score first, crossing in the fourth minute when Adam Blair crashed over off a Robbie Farah pass.
After that, it became a procession. The Knights were composed and clinical, although sterner tests almost certainly await.
That said, they look a far better side in Wayne Bennett's second year in charge. Part of that can be put down to the arrival of Beau Scott and Jeremy Smith, part to the return of captain Kurt Gidley and part to Uate's performance.
Less than a week after signing a new long-term contract, Uate had a field day.
The highlight was his opener. Not content with splitting the Tigers defence as he raced 60 metres downfield, Uate then backed up moments later to cross in the corner.
That try put the Knights in the lead and they were never headed thereafter as they finished an impressive start to the season with seven tries.
The only downside was a wrist injury that brought a premature end to the night for Knights five-eighth Jarrod Mullen, although Bennett stressed he only took him off as a precaution.
Asked whether his side had made a statement with their performance, Bennett said: "Not yet. There will be some people looking over their shoulders but we haven't made a statement.
"I know this much - what starts off in March doesn't really equate to what's going to finish off in September.
"I have seen teams on day one thinking how are you going to beat them and by September they haven't even made the (top) eight. So there is a lot out there in front of us, all of us."
As for Potter, it's back to the drawing board after a night that started with genuine promise but quickly fizzled out. "The scoreline doesn't read very well," the new coach admitted.
Captain Robbie Farah added: "We started well but in these early games possession is paramount. We gifted them field position and quality ball, and we weren't tough enough or strong enough to handle the adversity we came up against.
"As a group we need to handle things better when they're not going our way, and hang in there better and wait for the momentum to turn. We just didn't hang in there well enough tonight."
Only four minutes after the Tigers opened the scoring, the Knights hit back when winger James McManus finished off some smart work by Darius Boyd.
Soon enough, Uate did it all himself and the procession was underway.
The Tigers' poor first half reached its nadir when Matt Bell fumbled the ball and then threw an inexcusable pass to no one, and Dane Gagai swooped.
Uate made it a double as he carried Bell and Moltzen over the line in the 46th minute. Three minutes later he snuck over from dummy half and the Tigers were in serious trouble.
"Soft tries too - like Uate from dummy half," Farah said.
"You knew he was going to go all day. We need hard work. It's not going to be easy but we can turn it around.
"It's a long year. The good thing is, I guess, we have time. But we can't make a habit of that."
NEWCASTLE 42 (A Uate 3 D Gagai 2 J McManus 2 tries; K Gidley 7 goals) WESTS TIGERS 10 (A Blair T Moltzen tries; B Marshall goal) at Hunter Stadium. Referee: Gerard Sutton, Brett Suttor. Crowd: 21,935.
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