Dolphins recruit Morgan Knowles issues Brisbane Broncos a World Club Challenge warning ahead of Hull KR clash
Dolphins new player Morgan Knowles has issued a warning to the Brisbane Broncos ahead of the World Club Challenge, slamming suggestions that England’s Super League competition is an inferior product to the NRL.
Knowles, who came to Redcliffe to reunite with former St Helens coach Kristian Woolf, admits he has long felt Super League was underrated abroad and has made a point to prove it.
Knowles won three consecutive premierships under Woolf and the 29-year-old lock made 246 appearances before pursuing a “new challenge”. There’s no guarantee he’ll make the Dolphins’ starting team; Tom Gilbert, Max Plath, Thomas Flegler and Daniel Saifiti are ready to make a comeback from injuries at the start of the season.
Morgan Knowles photo taken during Dolphins practice.Credit: Dolphins Media
England greats Sam Burgess and James Graham have become bona fide NRL stars following their move to Australia, while Morgan Smithies has become a mainstay of the Canberra Raiders’ forward group.
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While Knowles hoped to achieve “even a quarter” of what these men did, he was determined to dispel beliefs that Super League could not produce the same quality of talent; These insinuations only intensified after the Kangaroos beat the Ashes 3-0 late last year.
But the “proud Cumbrian” has issued a warning to the Broncos ahead of their clash with Hull Kingston Rovers on February 20, believing the latter have the ability to shock the NRL champions as he and St Helens did against Penrith Panthers in 2023.
“Hull KR have a great chance if they are playing at their best. Super League is lagging behind a bit and that certainly bothers us English people,” Knowles said.
“It was the same when I came to St Helens in ’23, everyone was asking why I was in Australia and when I said we were playing Penrith they laughed and said there would be cricket scores. But we were quietly confident.
