Emotional Pearce breaks silence after relinquishing Knights NRL captaincy

Former Newcastle captain Mitchell Pearce says he is "committed" to being the best man he can after relinquishing the reins at the Knights following revelations about his personal life.

The former NSW halfback's wedding to Kristin Scott was cancelled late last month after he was allegedly caught sending racy text messages to a Newcastle employee.

Mitchell Pearce says he is “taking steps” to improve as a man after giving up the captaincy at Newcastle.Credit:Getty Images

"I love this club and I love my family and I’m committed to working as hard as I can to be the best man I can be, both on and off the field.

"I’d appreciate some respect moving forward and a bit of time to get back to training."

O'Brien said the decision was Pearce's alone and did not expect the saga to detract from the Knights' 2021 season, where they will look to build on a drought-breaking finals appearance last year following three straight wooden spoons from 2015-17.

"Mitch came to it himself and I support him in it," the coach said.

"We’ve had some productive conversations earlier this week but I’m confident this won’t have an impact on our season."

"It won't be used as motivation and it won’t be used as an excuse, we’ll get on with it as professionals."

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