Warriors 18 Knights 36 (Please refresh browser for latest score)
Fulltime: A pretty poor second half effort from the Warriors - they were well in the game with 30mins left but were out-gunned up front by an impressive Knights pack. Pearce was in complete control and kept RTS out of the game with his tactical kicking. The Warriors fall to 2-6 on the year and face the prospect of missing the finals. That was a poor days work.
80mins - PENALTY GOAL KNIGHTS: Ponga ends the game with another two-points and thankfully that's the end. NEW 36-18.
79mins - Knights playing ad-lib footy now - Ponga and Pearce playing touch between themselves - Pearce kicks on the last and RTS forces it down. Now the Knights have a penalty in front with Herbert's short drop out floating out on the full.
74mins - TRY KNIGHTS - Kalyn Ponga: Oh man. The Knights just far too good - like it's not even close. Pearce, who has been superb, finds Ponga on an angle and he beats what seamed like four or five would-be defenders to score untouched from 30m out. He converts his own try. The Warriors have been clear second best tonight. NEW 34-18.
73mins - Warriors looking clueless at the moment. Another messy set ends in another poor kick, this time from Green and Ponga will run it back.
72mins - Pearce finds touch on the last. The Warriors can't combat the Knights kicking game. It's killing their momentum.
70mins - Warriors cross halfway on tackle four...Hiku makes a break but losses the ball forward in contact. Scrum Knights on their own 40. Time running out.
67mins - TRY KNIGHTS - Hymel Hunt: SKD goes super close on the fourth tackle but great try saver from Tohu Harris. Pearce bombs on the last and Lee climbs high, bats the ball back to Hunt who scores. That should be the game. Ponga can't convert from a wide angle which gives the Warriors a sniff. NEW 28-18.
66mins - Herbert with a loose carry on halfway drops the ball and the Knights have a scrum.
64mins - Harris with a nice run on the fourth tackle but there is no support there...he offloads in depseration but the Knights tidy up.
62mins - Hiku makes a break in halfway on the last but is gathered up by Ponga. Green kicks on the last but again Ponga is there to regather on his line and is tackled 5m out.
60mins - The Warriors' last tackle option taking has been awful. RTS this time caught on the last trying to make something out of nothing from 5m out. You have to kick there.....
59mins - Warriors get a penalty on tackle four. New set from the Knights' 30m.
58mins - Green's last tackle kick is charged 30m out by Watson..if he regathers he score under the posts but he loses the ball forward! Wow.
56mins - Pearce kicks on the last from 30m out finds touch 10m out. Fresh set for the Warriors.
55mins - TRY KNIGHTS - Sione Mata'utia: Poor defence. Warriors starting to drop off tackles now. Broken play after a Pearce offload has Ese'ese running across field, he slips a pass to Mata-utia he breaks three tackles to score next to the sticks. Harris and Hiku missing tackles there. Ponga converts. NEW 24-18.
54mins - Maumalo drops a high bomb and the Knights has another set 5m out.
53mins - Mistake from Paasi on the last in good field position - his offload is poor and the Knights have possession.
50mins - TRY WARRIORS - Ken Maumalo: Warriors shift the ball left on tackle four. Harris-Tavita finds Harris, who delays his pass to Hiku...draw and pass finds Maumalo who scores in the corner. Harris-Tavita ties it up with a superb kick from wide out.18-18.
49mins - Ponga's hands let him down on tackle four and the Warriors are off the hook for now but they are really struggling at the omment. Oh - they have just been saved by the referee - penalty for slowing down the play. Warriors from their own 40 with a fresh set.
48mins - Papali'i loses the ball on tackle four on halfway. Knights have the ball on the Warriors 30m on tackle two.
47mins - Knights have no interest in RTS getting involved as Pearce's short kick finds touch 10m out.
46mins - PENALTY GOAL KNIGHTS: Ponga makes no mistake from in front. NEW 18-12.
45mins - Penalty Knights. Blair pinged for holding down Pearce. They will have a shot at goal, which again the Warriors will be happy with.
44mins - Line drop-out Warriors. Lovely kick from Ponga has Beale tackled in the in-goal.
43mins - Messy set from the Warriors ends with a messy final play - Green bombs, no one wants it but it bounces into te hands of Hunt and he is tackled on the 30.
41mins - Knights rumbling down field with ease but Ponga makes a mistakke on tackle four. he takes on the line abd creates speace down the left hand sdie but he is tackled into touch by Herbert and Beale.
Second-half: The Knights will have the ball to start the second spell.
The Warriors started asleep giving up eight-points in less than 10 minutes but they slowly got into the game. The Knights decision to take an easy two points with the Warriors on the rack was a turning point, with the home side scoring on their next set to close the gap. Warriors must match the Knights' intensity in the second spell....the visitors are clearly up for this one.
Halftime: The Knights threaten on the final set of the half, but Pearce's kick is cleaned up by RTS.
39mins - Warriors run on the last and Hiku is away down the left hand side but there is plenty of cover defence there to shut it down.
37mins - Great final tackle kick from Green rescues the Warriors on that set. Knights from their own 20.
35mins - Good settling set of tackles from the Warriors has the Knights returning from their own 20.
33mins - TRY WARRIORS - Ken Maumalo: Good set from the Warriors - their best of the match. Green on the last with the high bomb, Hiku bats it back in the contest to Harris, shifts left to Maumalo who dives over to score in Kalyn Ponga's tackle. Harris-Tavita from out wide nails it. Great kick. NEW 16-12.
31mins - Maumalo does well on tackle four to earn his side a penalty for holding on.
29mins - PENALTY GOAL KNIGHTS - Ponga makes no mistake. NEW 16-6.
28mins - Warriors cop a bit of a break. Referee awards a penalty to the Knights in front of the posts and the Knights will have a shot...Probably happy to concede two rather than six.
27mins - Harris-Tavita again is poor on the last - his pass is dropped by Maumalo and SKD is away, over halfway but RTS pulls him down with a try-saver. Knights have a penalty though and have a real chance to break the game open on this set.
26mins - Poor set from the Knights has the Warriors returning from the 30m line.
25mins - Decent set from the Warriors ends with a Blake Green bomb but Lee is there and takes it well. Knights working out from their line.
23mins - Another poor finish to a promising Warriors set. Harris-Tavita runs on the last, finds Hiku 10m out but he's hammered in a great tackle. Knights re-set from their 5m.
22mins - Penalty for the Warriors. Klemmer pinged for holding Hiku down on tackle four.
21mins - Decent set from the Knigyts ends in a Ponga grubber...RTS is there to tidy up and return the ball.
19mins - TRY NEWCASTLE - Shaun Kennny-Dowall: Knights rumble down forward with ease. Pearce on the last puts it high and SKD out-jumps Maumalo and dives over to score. Ponga converts. NEW 14-6.
18mins - Warriors looking dangerous again but a poor end to the set from Harris-Tavita...his bomb is too long and Edrick Lee has an easy take. Seven-tackle set for the Knights.
16mins - Warriors making yards at will.....RTS on tackle four grubbers but Ponga is there to tidy up. Line drop out Knights.
15mins - Seven-tackle set for the warriors. Pearce's kick has too much on it. Knights went close through Ponga but a good, desperate tackle from Hiku saved the day.
13mins - Warriors looking dangerous. Herbert is away down the right after Papali'i created space with an offload. Knights shut it down...the ball comes left on the next tackle and Afoa almost sends Maumalo down the touchline but the pass is forward.
11mins - TRY WARRIORS - Patrick Herbert: Great setup play. Green goes right and finds RTS, who double pumps 5m out, has Hymel Hunt guessing and Herbert walks through a huge hole. His first NRL try. Harris-Tavita converts from wide out. NEW 8-6.
10mins - Another penalty for the Warriors. Hiku with a nice run and is held down in the tackle. And now another penalty - a trip from Ponga on Harris-Tavita. Warriors from the Knights red zone.
9mins - Harris earns the Warriors a penalty. The resume on halfway.
8mins - Decent set from the Knights. A couple good runs from Klemmer. Pearce kicks for touch on the last and finds it 10m out. Scrum Warriors.
6mins - TRY KNIGHTS - Mitchell Pearce: Too easy. Parce runs at the line, beats Afoa and reaches out to score. An awful start so far from the Warriors. Ponga from a handy spot makes no mistake. NEW 8-0.
4mins - Klemmer gets tipped in a three-man tackle. Burr pinged for dangerous play and the Knights have a penalty on the fourth tackle. The resume play 30m out.
3mins - PENALTY GOAL - Kalyn Ponga: The Queensland rep makes no mistake. NEW 2-0.
2mins - Levi makes a bust through the middle on tackle four and find Ponga but RTS is there to make the tackle. Knights have a penalty on the last following a high ball from Pearce. Fusitu'a took it well, but one of the Warriors forwards was pinged for obstruction.
1min - Warriors make it to only their 30m on the first set. Green gets a kick away, under pressure and the Knights have the ball on halfway on tackle three.
Kickoff: Warriors will have first use of the football as Danny Levi gets us underway.
4:01pm - Players and officials are heading out onto Mount Smart Stadium with new signing Kodi Nikorima watching on.
3:43pm - Hello all, a few late changes. David Fuistua'a is out meaning a start on the wing for Gerard Beale. The Warriors bench is Roache, Blair, Satae and Perham.
Kia ora, good afternoon and welcome to Newshub's live coverage of the NRL clash between the Warriors and the Newcastle Knights from Mt Smart Stadium.
Pre-game chat: Blake Green, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, David Fusitu'a return for clash with Knights
The Warriors will welcome back key players Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, Blake Green and David Fuistua for Sunday's NRL clash with the Newcastle Knights in Auckland.
Skipper Tuivasa-Sheck and Fusitua return to the starting side, after missing the Anzac day loss to Melbourne, while Green seems to have overcome the groin injury that forced him out of the last three rounds.
After his impressive debut against the Storm, rookie centre Patrick Herbert has done enough to earn another start in the centres, where he'll partner Peta Hiku.
With Green now on deck, coach Stephen Kearney has also shifted Tohu Harris back to the second row and Gerard Beale goes to the bench.
In the forwards, Isaiah Papali'i remains as an edge forward. with the seasoned Adam Blair taking to a bench that also includes hooker Nathaniel Roache and prop Bunty Afoa.
Utility Jazz Tevaga has been ruled out of the match, after he was forced from the field early in Melbourne with a leg injury.
Solomone Kata, who missed the last round on compassionate grounds, has been added to an extended interchange, alongside Hayze Perham, Ligi Sao and Chris Satae.
The Knights currently sit one spot above the Warriors in 11th on the NRL ladder and are coming off a comprehensive win over the Parramatta Eels.
The New Zealanders have a strong home record against the Novacastrians, having won their last six contests at Mt Smart.
Warriors: 1-Roger Tuivasa-Sheck (c), 2-David Fusitu'a, 3-Peta Hiku, 4-Patrick Herbert, 5-Ken Maumalo, 6-Chanel Harris-Tavita, 7-Blake Green, 8-Agnatius Paasi, 9-Issac Luke, 10-Leeson Ah Mau, 11-Isaiah Papali'i, 12-Tohu Harris, 13-Lachlan Burr.
Interchange: 14-Nathaniel Roache, 15-Adam Blair, 16-Bunty Afoa, 17-Gerard Beale, 18-Hayze Perham, 19-Solomone Kata, 20-Ligi Sao, 21-Chris Satae.
Knights: 1-Kalyn Ponga, 2-Edrick Lee, 3-Hymel Hunt, 14-Sione Mata'utia 5-Shaun Kenny-Dowall, 6-Connor Watson, 7-Mitchell Pearce, 8-David Klemmer, 9-Danny Levi, 10-Daniel Saifiti, 11-Lachlan Fitzgibbon, 12-Mitch Barnett, 13-Tim Glasby.
Interchange: 15-Herman Ese’ese, 16-James Gavet, 17-Josh King, 19-Kurt Mann, 18-Mason Lino, 20-Jamie Buhrer.
