Listen to the latest episode of Toohey's News: The Podcast on Spotify, Apple, Google, or wherever you like to listen.
In Barry Toohey's words - if there is a young and aspiring player out there who wants to play in the NRL, Kurt Gidley is your role model.
The younger brother another Newcastle Knights legend - Matt Gidley - Kurt readily admits he wasn't the most naturally gifted player to ever don the red and blue, but his advantage was an unwavering commitment to training and dedication to the Knights mantra: be the player every other play wants to play with.
In 2001, the young Gidley was working as an apprentice butcher when he was called up to first grade. He hung up the apron and knives and made straight for training - he would go on to become one of the most admired and celebrated captains of the club, a renowned fullback in the game, and a remarkable goal kicker - the latter of which carved his name in perhaps the most thrilling, nail-biting Knights victory to date in the 22nd round of the 2014 competition.
Gidley can still recount from memory, second-by-second, the Knights resurgence from a trailing 10 points to defeat the Storm at Hunter Stadium in 2014 with one set and just 2 minutes on the clock, with his sideline conversion after the buzzer sealing the victory.
Gidley joins Barry Toohey in episode 15 of Toohey's News as the Knights announce the record resigning of current star fullback Kalyn Ponga for an unprecedented $4 million.
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Toohey will bring a new episode to all your favourite podcasting apps every week, complementing his premium and exclusive Knights reporting and analysis in the pages of the Newcastle Herald.
Episode 16 of Toohey's News will publish next week.
