Newcastle Knights

Ponga, playing in his first game at McDonald Jones Stadium since July last year, responded to criticism received last month with a try and two try assists as the Knights ran in four tries in 15 minutes to blow the Titans away.

The Knights trailed 12-6 before half-time until Ponga sprung to life and placed a kick for Tyson Frizell to cross. He then linked with Bradman Best on the left edge for a 22-18 lead and then broke through himself for the side's fifth of the afternoon.

Both sides traded tries early before the Eels produced eight line breaks in the first half to set up a 30-6 lead against a Knights outfit that missed 65 tackles throughout the contest.

Marquee men Dylan Brown and Mitchell Moses crossed for tries before Gutherson fooled a clumsy Knights defensive line at dummy half twice to cross for a double.

He had a treble by the 46th minute as the Eels let slip a few more opportunities throughout the evening.

In his third game back after a three-game suspension, Drinkwater ran for 216 metres and had two try assists as the Cowboys put a dampener on Ponga's 100th NRL game and his first since Round 2 due to concussion.

The Cowboys struck the first blow when Drinkwater exploded into space and found Reece Robson backing up inside for the game's opening try.

Adam O'Brien's men face a long road trip to Townsville after a Nathan Cleary field goal broke their hearts last Saturday but the expected return of skipper Kalyn Ponga should be enough to put the spring back in their step at Newcastle this week. 

Meanwhile, the Cowboys will be hoping to make amends with their faithful after losing to the Dolphins at home in Round 6.

After an up and down opening few games, the defending premiers have returned to form in impressive fashion over the last two rounds, scoring 97 points and conceding just 24 in wins over the Raiders and Sea Eagles. 

With Dylan Edwards firing at the back and Nathan Cleary pulling all the right strings in the halves, the Panthers have shaken off any suggestion of a Premiership hangover and now sit second on the Telstra Premiership ladder. 

The Warriors managed a narrow win in the season opener but it wasn't without a scare as the Knights went close to snatching victory late. 

Both sides have had a mixed start to the year since - the Warriors winning four of their first five games while the Knights have won two and drawn once.

It is clear that there has been a change in attitude from both clubs in 2023, however, with Warriors coach Andrew Webster showing some good signs early while Adam O'Brien has found some steel from his side. 

In what was the first drawn NRL match since Round 3 in 2020, the lead changed hands multiple times, with the Sea Eagles having appeared to have won the game after scoring three tries in the last 22 minutes, before Dom Young got over for his fourth try three minutes from time to force golden point. 

Both Daly Cherry-Evans and Jackson Hastings had wayward field goal attempts in golden point, but in the end a draw felt like the fitting result. 

Niu scored twice in the first half before his third with 12 minutes to go looked to have put the result beyond doubt, only for Felise Kaufusi to then be sent to the sin bin for a late tackle which saw him put on report for the second time in the game at McDonald Jones Stadium.

It set up a nervous finish, before Isaako's double inside the last five minutes saw Wayne Bennett's side get past a stubborn Knights side who had three players appearing at NRL level for the first time, with a bench that had just 18 total games of first-grade experience. 

The undefeated Dolphins face their first test on the road when they travel to Newcastle to take on the Knights at McDonald Jones Stadium.

Wayne Bennett's side have stunned many with their start to their inaugural season and they'll be out to keep that record intact against a Knights outfit which is expected to be heavily depleted for the match. 

Newcastle's miraculous effort to hold on against Wests Tigers on Sunday appears to have come at a cost with coach Adam O'Brien expecting up to six players to be unavailable. 

Wests Tigers only had themselves to blame in a first-up loss to the Titans with plenty of opportunities in attack not taken in front of a vocal home crowd who won't want a repeat at the venue this weekend.

The Knights too were left to rue multiple missed opportunities with the ball in hand with the Warriors' defence on song to deny Adam O'Brien's side a chance to snatch victory.

All eyes will be on Jackson Hastings and David Klemmer taking on their former clubs.