After a wildly successful Magic Round, the Newcastle Knights NRLW side is striving to keep up the momentum for the rest of the season.
Rain, hail or shine, the squad’s women’s outfit always manages to pull through.
Defeating the Canberra Raiders 18-0 in atrocious conditions at the weekend seemed to be a challenging yet rewarding feat for the team, who piled on three tries and conversions in the second period after a scoreless first half.
Star centre Shanice Parker admitted she was “more proud” of her squad and the fans.
“It was awesome,” she said.
“Despite the weather, which was quite unfortunate for the day one girls, but on day two we had great crowd turn out.
“So, it was exciting for us, especially being the home team.
“It was a grind, that first half, we had to slog it out against the Raiders, they came out hard.
“But, hopefully we’re building at the right time.
“We’re halfway through the season now, so we’re looking forward to what we can produce over the next four weeks.”
Newcastle’s victory launched the Knights into third spot on the ladder.
“We’ve got a big internal focus at the moment, so we’re just focusing on sharpening our craft as a team,” Parker explained.
“And, I think that’s been working over the past few weeks.
“So, going forward, we’re just looking to sharpen what we’ve worked on over the pre-season and the last month or so and, hopefully, bring that into fruition in the next couple of rounds.”
The squad will return to McDonald Jones Stadium on Saturday 9 August to tackle the Tigers.
Despite the opposing squad currently residing at 11th on the table, yet to get a win under their belt, Parker said the odds were still in anyone’s favour.
“This competition week-in week-out, there’s different results,” she stated.
“You’d predict a team to win, but then the other team comes out on top.
“So, you can’t go in assuming things.
“They’ve got nothing to lose, they will come out hard, and they’ll come out fighting.
“There’s no doubt about that.
“So, hopefully we can weather the storm with them and play our footy.”
Lock Simone Karpani echoed Parker’s statements.
“I think for right now we’re just focusing on ourselves,” she said.
“With Kezie Apps at Wests, the Tigers are a lethal team… and they will come out firing.
“So, we just have to make sure we’re doing everything we can, go through our processes and just trust each other and out team plan.”
The following round, Newcastle lines up against NRLW pacesetters Sydney Roosters on Sunday 17 August at Industree Group Stadium in Gosford.
And, in both upcoming fixtures, the Knights will sport their inaugural Indigenous jerseys, reflecting the club’s commitment to the community.
“It’s super special,” said Parker.
“We’ve had some awesome milestones this year, including the mining hi-vis jersey, Magic Round and, now, our first inaugural Indigenous jumper.
“I know this community boasts strong ties with the Awabakal community and roots within Newcastle.
“So, I can’t wait to get out there and represent the mobs around the Hunter region.”
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