Seventh heaven: Ponga’s hi-viz heroes seal Bunnies boilover and rock finals race

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Only in Newcastle could you hope to see hi-viz sparkle.

To a soundtrack of Screaming Jets and Silverchair, Kalyn Ponga, the Knights and a sold-out 29,018 crowd did exactly that, shining brightest with finals fortunes in flux on Sunday afternoon.

Speaking before Newcastle’s 29-10 disposal of a badly out-of-form South Sydney, Adam O’Brien touched on the “result anxiety” his side experienced last year in front of the NRL’s hardiest fans.

There’s one for debate throughout the Hunter this week – what’s more believable: that O’Brien looked a dead man walking two months ago, or that a day out in front of the Knights faithful once rattled this side that now has seven straight wins under their belt?

Because this was Newcastle’s first sell-out since 2012. Not since 2001-02 have they strung so many victories together at once. And the way O’Brien’s side is going – without star No.7 Jackson Hastings mind you – they’re going to need another level added to the Andrew Johns stand.

Despite a brief second-half salvo from the Rabbitohs, the Knights have set up a critical three-point gap between themselves and the vanquished Bunnies – still in eighth-place on the ladder.

Greg Marzhew scored a hat-trick for the Knights.Credit: Getty

The visitors were hurting this weekend following the passing of 2014 premiership-winning teammate Kyle Turner, his No.15 jumper draped across a chair on South Sydney’s bench throughout the contest.

With just three wins from their last eight games, the Rabbitohs will regroup with the bye this week. And then square off with the Roosters, and most likely, one of the great rivals progressing to the finals, the other to Mad Monday.

Latrell Mitchell faces a nervous wait in the interim for head contact on Tyson Frizell that saw him sin-binned and put on report in the final minute.

Newcastle on the other hand, have been winning for almost two months now, another Sunday sellout surely looming against Cronulla.

Ponga ensured this week’s punters got their money’s worth, but he was hardly a one-man band.

Bradman Best and Lachlan Fitzgibbon especially put their backs to the grindstone, denying several Rabbitohs raids with desperate goal line defence.

While Mitchell could barely get a look-in, Ponga played his part – the millionaire match-winner – to a tee.

Just six minutes it took for him to swing left and skin Souths for numbers, Greg Marzhew duly strolling over.

For Campbell Graham – typically one of the best defensive centres in the NRL – this was just the start of a sorry Sunday.

Latrell Mitchell misses a straightforward conversion attempt.Credit: Fox Sports

Marzhew’s second shortly afterwards played out in such fashion, before the Knights No.1 beat Graham again on a kick-chase just for good measure.

Despite Ponga’s brilliance and Newcastle’s garish orange hi-vis jerseys, it wasn’t all sunshine and lollipops. One short-side assault finished with a Ponga pass being rifled into the advertising boards.

When the attack went awry though, the likes of Fitzgibbon and Best simply bundled Graham and Taane Milne either into touch or error when the tryline loomed.

Such is life for the Bunnies at the moment, even when Damien Cook scurried over to start the second half, Mitchell could only hammer the conversion attempt straight into the upright, from directly in front.

With Ponga in rare touch though, Newcastle had Souths covered at every turn. Grubbered tries to Daniel Saifiti and Adam Clune kept Shaquai Mitchell’s late four-pointer in check. And when Best streaked away with an intercept to seal it, the hi-vis, you’d swear it sparkled after all.

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