sport, local-sport, Newcastle Knights, Nathan Brown, Danny Levi, Jesse Ramien, Herman Ese'ese

A furious Knights coach Nathan Brown promised to wield the axe in the wake of his side's fourth straight defeat at the hands of the Wests Tigers last weekend and he has been true to his word. The Newcastle Herald understands starting hooker Danny Levi, right centre Jesse Ramien, interchange prop Herman Ese'ese and bench utility Jamie Buhrer have all been dumped for Saturday's crucial clash against high-fliers Manly at Lottoland. Levi, Ramien and Ese'ese are all expected to miss selection in the Knights' 21-man squad to be announced at 4 pm on Tuesday with Buhrer the likely 18th man. Veteran forward Aidan Guerra, prop Jacob Saifiti and five-eighth Mason Lino will all be named in the 17-man squad with backrower Lachlan Fitzgibbon also making a timely return from ligament damage suffered after he dislocated his elbow against the Warriors a month ago. "Lachy's come through a really comprehensive rehab protocol and was pushing for the Parra game," Knights head of high performance Balin Cupples said on the club's website. "But he's come through it that well, he's put plenty of work in and he's [now] put himself in line for selection this week. He got through training today [Monday]. He's got one more session to get through, but we should see him line-up against the Sea Eagles on Saturday." READ MORE: Ramien was close to being dumped last week after a poor game against the Sydney Roosters but was given a reprieve by Brown for the Tigers clash. While he set up a try for winger Shaun Kenny-Dowall, his defence on the right edge was still found wanting on a number of occasions. Hymel Hunt trained at right centre on Monday and will take Ramien's spot with Kurt Mann shifting from five-eighth to Hunt's left wing position outside Tautau Moga. Lino will come back into the side in the halves alongside Mitchell Pearce. The axing of Levi means in-form utility Connor Watson will start at hooker and likely play 80 minutes. Jacob Saifiti is a straight swap for Ese'ese, whose on-line defence cost the Knights two tries against the Tigers. Prop Josh King wasn't considered for promotion due to concussion.

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