Following the announcement by Kalyn Ponga that he is committed to the Newcastle Knights until 2027, his club’s incoming CEO admits his star fullback’s tether could be cut after that.
Look, I think the Will Kennedy situation at the moment is an odd one.
Speaking to the Daily Telegraph, Knights boss Peter Parr touched on the struggle his club could face in retaining the star fullback past his contract.
“There’s no doubt with the introduction of the new teams that Kalyn would be a target, especially for a Perth [Bears] team,” Parr conceded.
“He would be a great marquee signing for a new franchise, but I don’t know what the future holds.”
While Parr was hesitant to confirm Ponga’s commitment once his current deal expires, he declared he will not allow him to leave early.
“The person who would have a major say in whether Kalyn left early would be me and that won’t be happening. He is here for the next two years,” he added.
Parr went on to assure Knights fans that his goal is to retain Ponga, and hasn’t thrown in the towel despite overwhelming odds against him.
“We will do what we can to keep Kalyn at the club, but we’re not naive enough to think that he won’t be attractive to a start-up club like Perth or indeed any other NRL club,” he said.
“Our preferred option is to keep Kalyn long-term but with the advent of new teams, I don’t think anybody can predict what might happen with the player market.”
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