Nov 21st, 2018

Nov 21st, 2018

Knights coach Nathan Brown has admitted the recent Jarryd Hayne scandal will impact the club’s ability to recruit Dragons back Kurt Mann for the 2019 season.

After a triple crown of wooden spoons from 2015-17, the Knights will be looking to bolster their roster after a successful 2018 season which saw them finish 11th.

Their plans to land Mann for the 2019 season however have been uprooted by Hayne's recent sexual assault charge, with the Dragons likely to hold on to their 25-year-old utility with Hayne no longer a viable substitute.

Brown said the Knights will be forced to consider other options for their 2019 recruitment strategy.

(AAP)

“Everyone’s quite aware that we’ve had an interest in Kurt,” Brown told Macquarie Sports Radio.

“Obviously the Dragons were happy for us to have an interest in Kurt as long as they could replace him.

“But obviously with the Jarryd Hayne situation, the Dragons have got no replacement for Kurt, so they really fancy their chances with the squad they’ve got and they can’t let Kurt go unless they find a replacement.”

Hayne, who returned to the NRL in 2016 after a stint with the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers has been charged with aggravated sexual and inflicting actual bodily harm.

Mann gets across the line

The 30-year-old was granted strict conditional bail, preventing him from entering Newcastle, and forcing him to surrender his passport.

He will appear at the Burwood Local Court on December 10.