sport, local-sport, Tautau Moga, Newcastle Knights, Nathan Brown, Marc Glanville

You know there is something drastically wrong when you have a $380,000-a-year centre stuck in reserve grade all season who can't force his way into the Knights top grade side even when seven starting players are missing. If ever there was a game that Tautau Moga should have been demanding to play in, it was today's clash with the Warriors. No Mitchell Pearce, David Klemmer, Kalyn Ponga, Tim Glasby, Daniel Saifiti, Mitch Barnett or Edrick Lee, a side decimated by Origin, injury and suspension. Yet, rather than give Moga his long-awaited chance in the centres or on the wing as the injured Lee's replacement, coach Nathan Brown has again given him the cold shoulder and opted instead to make three positional changes to compensate. Centre Hymel Hunt goes to the wing, backrower Sione Mata'utia to centre with back-up hooker Jamie Buhrer starting in the backrow. It says plenty about Moga's form and where the coach believes his head is. Brown's message could not be clearer. 'You won't return to the top grade until you have earned it, no matter how much we are paying you'. Presumably, it is not just a message for Moga but for the entire playing group that after jerseys were literally almost given away to players at the club during the rebuild, those days are long gone. Reputations and pay packets don't count for anything at the selection table any longer either. It must be said that Moga has had his struggles both on and off the field with his recovery from a fourth knee reconstruction and his court dramas but we hear a poor attitude to constantly having to play NSW Cup is not helping his cause. There won't be an official announcement anytime soon but take it as read Sharks hooker Jayden Brailey will be at the Knights next season. We are hearing he has agreed to a three year deal. Apart from the fact he will need a release from the final year of his contract at Cronulla, the Knights can't publicise the deal or register it with the NRL until they can show they are under the salary cap for next season with him included in it. Young winger Starford To'a has had a cursed run with injury this season with his latest probably costing him an NRL debut tonight. To'a 18, has missed most of the season with a badly broken hand suffered in a first round NSW Cup match but after one game back, was on coach Nathan Brown's radar after Edrick Lee fractured his arm against Brisbane. That was until he suffered an ankle injury against Blacktown in Cup just 24 hours later. To'a returned home yesterday following surgery with another Knights' up-and-comer Bradman Best alongside him in the car. Best 17, had surgery at the same time, for the same injury, suffered in the same game. Phoenix Crossland's NRL debut against the Warriors today and possible selection for the Bulldogs clash next Friday night will see him pull out of Wednesday night's Origin Under 20's clash against Queensland at ANZ Stadium. Former premiership-winning Knight Marc Glanville says he is watching with interest but highly doubts he will be a part of any class action law suit being proposed by Sydney law firms Bannister Law and Cahill Lawyers against the NRL over their handling of concussion. Glanville, who has had issues over the past few years after suffering 7 or 8 concussions during his career including two or three severe bouts, says it would be difficult for him to get involved. "You always wanted to play on, it was a badge of honour back then to get back into it and I've never blamed the docs or the club," he said. Glanville, who recently lost his father Warren to dementia, gets tested once every year at the Sports Concussion Clinic in Newcastle and will donate his brain to the clinic when he passes. Meanwhile, the Triple M Newcastle sideline eye is heading to England for a Leeds Rhinos reunion next weekend. Former Knights player and coach Todd Lowrie is set to handle the sideline duties for the Bulldogs game in his absence. What could possibly possess a 39-year-old ex-NRL player who is almost three years retired after a 215-game top grade career to want to make a comeback at club level in Newcastle? If you are former Knights enforcer Jeremy Smith, the answer is simple - mateship. "I have really missed being around players and especially the environment that footy creates," Smith says. "My wife thinks I'm stupid but I'm actually really looking forward to playing again. Of getting out there on the field and helping the young blokes development their games first hand." As the Newcastle Herald reported last week, Smith and another former NRL player Daniel Fitzhenry both signed with the South Newcastle Lions prior to the June 30 registration cut-off. Smith says he is not coming out of retirement to play first grade. "I'll have a run around in reserve grade but won't be taking anyone's spot in first grade," he said. "That's not what it's about." Smith has been to a few training sessions and if he doesn't play this weekend, will aim to make his Lions debut in a week's time. Fitzhenry is carrying an injury and may be a week later. We suspect if Smith gets himself fit and starts rattling a few bones in tackles like he used to, first grade coach coach Andrew 'Bobcat' Ryan might be knocking on his door come finals time. With seven rounds to go plus some catch-up games in Newcastle Premier League soccer, it's tight at the top in the race for the semifinals. Seven teams are realistically still in the hunt for the title which, on the surface, makes for a compelling home straight battle. But that doesn't paper over the problems the competition is facing at the other end of the ladder where bottom-placed Lakes sit on four points, a whopping 23 behind leaders Broadmeadow and 19 points outside the top four. Adamstown, on six points and Valentine on eight, aren't faring much better and just can't compete financially for talent with the wealthier clubs. Yet Northern's solution to the problem is not to reduce the number of teams but to bring another lower division side up next season. Make sense of that if you can.

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