South Sydney’s Cody Walker, Latrell Mitchell and Jack Wighton — three of the NRL’s biggest stars and proud Indigenous representatives — have withdrawn from next month’s Koori Knockout, ruling themselves out of the iconic tournament.
While the trio have been regular participants in past tournaments and are still expected to attend the Tamworth event, they’ve opted not to lace up their boots this year, departing from tradition.
According to the Daily Telegraph, the decision was made to avoid any risk of players getting injured in the tournament, which could disrupt South Sydney’s pre-season preparations for the 2026 NRL campaign.
This choice comes after injury-hit seasons for all three players, whose absences contributed to South Sydney’s turbulent 2025 campaign.
For Walker, Mitchell and Wighton, sitting out the Knockout is no small decision. All three have proudly embraced their Indigenous heritage by participating in the annual competition, one of the largest Indigenous sporting events in the world.
The 2025 Koori Knockout, running from October 3 to 6 in Tamworth, continues to draw huge crowds — last year’s edition attracted more than 30,000 attendees and over 500,000 broadcast viewers, a figure organisers are hoping to surpass this year.
Despite their absence, plenty of star power will still be on show. South Sydney forward Tallis Duncan is among the expected participants, alongside a host of other NRL representatives across the three-day carnival.
Adding to the occasion, former NRL names Dean Widders, Timana Tahu and Beau Champion will join NITV’s commentary team to cover the grand final on the October long weekend.
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