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Newcastle Herald
Newcastle Herald

Newcastle Permanent gets naming rights for Knights Centre of Excellence

The Knights Centre of Excellence. Picture supplied

Newcastle Permanent has been announced as the official naming rights partner of the Knights Centre of Excellence until at least the end of the 2026 season.

The Newcastle Permanent Centre of Excellence - or the Newcastle Permanent Centre - is a high-performance training base for the club's elite women and men players, a home ground for the next generation of Knights stars, and a facility the entire community can call home.

Newcastle Permanent Chief Distribution Officer Paul Juergens said the partnership was a natural fit for two icons of the Hunter.

"It's a hugely exciting time for the Knights, with the men's side earning a home final for the people of the Hunter to cheer on for the first time since 2006, while the NRLW side are the defending premiers and currently sit atop the competition ladder," he said.

The original plan for the Knights Centre of Excellence.
The original plan for the Knights Centre of Excellence.

"But we're no fair-weather fans. We've had a proud association with the Knights dating back to the 1990s and the Newcastle Permanent Centre shows our ongoing commitment to the club, the region, and the people who so passionately and fervently support the red and blue.

"We are also proud that the Newcastle Permanent Centre is an asset for the whole community. Junior clubs and school groups are encouraged to make use of the facilities, while an outdoor gym is under construction that anyone and everyone will be able to use to stay fit and healthy.

"A partnership that will span more than three years, we can't wait to see the young talent being fostered in the halls and on the fields of the Newcastle Permanent Centre during that time, and hopefully for Hannah [Southwell], Kalyn [Ponga] and the teams to bring back even more trophies to sit alongside the three already on display in the foyer."

The facility at Broadmeadow is only a stone's throw away from the Knights' home ground.

Officially opened by then Sports Minister Stuart Ayres in a ceremony last year, it puts the Knights on equal terms with the NRL's top sides, like reigning premiers Penrith who have used a similar facility for years, the Herald reported at the time.

The centre includes three fields, a gym, recovery pool, cinema, wrestling room, treatment areas and will soon have a museum-type space the public can visit.

Wednesday's announcement came after fullback Kalyn Ponga was voted the club's player of the year at a ceremony on Tuesday night.

Knights CEO Philip Gardner said Newcastle Permanent's commitment to excellence dating back more than a century made the organisation the ideal naming rights partner.

"Newcastle Permanent has been helping the people of the Hunter own their own homes since 1903, so this is a perfect partnership for our club's new home," he said.

"Being a customer-owned institution, Newcastle Permanent aligns with our club values such as the importance of community and respecting our tradition - something that makes both of our organisations great.

"We are extremely proud to call our training base the Newcastle Permanent Centre and look forward to seeing the iconic NP logo sitting proudly alongside our own Knights crest on the walls of this fantastic facility in the coming weeks."

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