EVEN after their uplifting triumph in the 2008 A-League grand final, the Newcastle Jets were very much the city's "second" team. While the two footballing flagships tried to peacefully co-exist, the Knights held the upper hand, in terms of game-day attendances, corporate support and media coverage. Their dominance over their soccer cousins was perhaps best evidenced by the fact they were the major tenants at (newly named) Ausgrid Stadium, sub-leasing it to the Jets in the summer months. Yet in late 2010, a discernible change in perception started to take place. After Nathan Tinkler's theatrical emergence to save Newcastle's A-League franchise from apparent oblivion, Knights fans, for the first time, were looking on the Jets with a degree of envy. Tinkler had slashed ticket prices at Jets games and bolstered their playing squad and support staff. He even agreed to underwrite an exhibition match that brought global superstar David Beckham's LA Galaxy team to town. Soon after Tinkler had secured international netball Tests for Newcastle and bailed out Surfest with a sixfigure rescue package. For the average Novocastrian, it was incomprehensible that Knights officials had rejected his offer to buy their club, which had accrued around $2.5 million in liabilities and faced a perennial battle to pay the bills. Tinkler, the self-proclaimed sporting "philanthropist" with an apparently bottomless pit of cash, seemed the obvious solution. In January, two months after his initial offer to privatise the Knights, he launched another bid and dramatically raised the stakes. This time he promised to pay out the club's existing debts and guarantee $10 million annually in sponsorship, each year for the next decade. It was touted as a "$100 million deal", but in reality it may not have cost him one cent. The Knights already earned about $7 million a season in sponsorship revenue. If Tinkler could increase corporate support, as he envisaged, he would potentially have no need to subsidise the club out of his own pocket. Any profit the club made during his tenure would be re-invested, Tinkler promised, in Newcastle rugby league. "The Tinkler Sports Group will provide a world-class team on and off the field, which will make the Hunter the envy of the rugby league world," Tinkler said in a statement. "We are investing in the Knights for the community, our children and above all because it's time that Newcastle won another premiership ... anything is possible for the Newcastle Knights if we dare to dream. The Newcastle Knights is a genuine community asset that belongs to all of us." Once again, however, Knights chairman Rob Tew baulked at the offer. "Our responsibility is to act in the best interests of our members," he said. "I'm not sure this is the best proposal." Behind the scenes, Knights management had conducted due diligence and were concerned about what they had learned of Tinkler. They had enough reliable information to form the view that the image of Tinkler created by spin doctors was far removed from his real persona. Negotiations continued but public opinion was firmly behind Tinkler, painted from the outset as a "white knight" with a heart of gold. He was so confident about getting the deal done that, on February 18, after hearing the Sharks had called a press conference to announce the re-signing of Kade Snowden, Tinkler phoned the NSW Origin prop, who was one of his favourite players, and promised him a longer, more lucrative contract if he re-joined Newcastle. Officials from Cronulla, who had been gazumped, were incredulous, as were their Knights counterparts. "Shortly before the press conference Kade was contacted directly by a third party with a substantial counter offer ... pressure that has been applied by a third party, and the timing of such, has placed Kade under a lot of stress today, and we felt that it was in his best interests not to hold the press conference this afternoon,'' the Sharks said in a statement. Knights CEO Steve Burraston revealed Newcastle had withdrawn from negotiations with Snowden more than a week earlier, adding: "We do not entice people to break contracts under any circumstance." Tinkler Sports Group chairman Ken Edwards insisted: "We have no ability to sign players ... it would be inappropriate for us to be talking about player signings." Edwards could have been accused of being disingenuous. Tinkler later confirmed he had indeed spoken directly to Snowden, saying: "I don't need anyone's permission to make a phone call." He added that Snowden was "going to be the best front-rower in the game", which would suggest to this writer that the approach was - to borrow a line from Edwards - "inappropriate" and his football acumen was arguable. The audacity of Tinkler's phone call was highlighted just a few days later when, frustrated by lack of progress in his talks with the Knights, he pulled the deal off the table and publicly lambasted them. Snowden must have wondered where that left him. "We are still at the same point we were three months ago," Tinkler told the Newcastle Herald's James Gardiner. "You can only bang your head against the wall for so long ... it is a two-man show. The Newcastle Knights belong to Robbie Tew and Steve Burraston. They are not capable of closing this deal. That is my frustration. The consequence of that is to say: 'That's enough, we are not going to get there'." Tinkler's comments heaped enormous pressure on Tew and Burraston, who were now effectively negotiating with a gun at their heads. The following day they called a media conference, at which they calmly and rationally explained their reticence to swallow what the tycoon was spruiking. "The offer we were left with is a pale imitation of the original offer," Tew said. "Put simply, the much talkedabout $100 million offer turned out to be a mirage. The real value of the offer ultimately put on the table is a yearby-year commitment of between $0 and $10 million paid over 10 years, with a maximum guarantee of two years." Tew said Tinkler's revised offer had tried to change the definition of sponsorship revenue to include all revenue other than ticket sales and membership fees. He said the Knights would receive more than $10 million from sponsorship and NRL grants in the next two years, meaning the Tinkler Sports Group would not be required to top that up. "Despite our best efforts, there are still significant differences between the deal that was announced by the Tinkler Group last month and the offer we currently have on the table," Tew said. Tinkler responded with an email to media outlets, saying Tew "did not understand the original offer" and had "sought to misrepresent our offer again". A week later, however, a deal was brokered, after Newcastle's board of directors voted in favour of a mutually acceptable proposal - a key component of which was a $20 million bank guarantee, designed to ensure Tinkler upheld his end of the bargain. Knights members were served with notice of an historic ballot, and after a month-long advertising blitz and various information nights, 97 per cent voted in favour of a Tinkler takeover on a euphoric night at Newcastle Entertainment Centre. The estimated 1300 diehards in attendance launched a trademark New-cas-tle chant when the result was announced. Tew described the ballot as "a resounding successful proposal for the Tinkler Sports Group", adding that the landslide margin would continue to ensure "a united club." As I wrote for the Newcastle Herald's next edition: "That the Tinkler bid was so comprehensively accepted was no great shock. The Knights board of directors had endorsed it, once Mr Tinkler agreed to their terms and conditions. "Legends like Paul Harragon, Andrew Johns, Mark Sargent, Steve Simpson and Tony Butterfield gave it their approval. Newcastle's only premiership-winning coaches, Michael Hagan and Mal Reilly, threw their weight behind the Tinkler campaign, as did current coach Rick Stone and skipper Kurt Gidley. "The club's founding fathers, Leigh Maughan and Michael Hill, said take the money and run. Popular opinion suggested it was a no-brainer. It is not every day that you get hit in the backside with a rainbow ... for Knights fans it is like all their Christmases have arrived at once. Bring on the new era." Tinkler did not attend the vote but said the next day he was "delighted" the community had endorsed him. "The Newcastle Knights can now begin a successful new chapter while remaining a united community club," he said in an emailed statement. "One of our commitments is to embrace everyone who has contributed to the club over the past 23 years, and as we embark on this exciting journey it is critical that the whole community now pulls together and gets behind the Knights to build the best possible future for our club. I am excited for the people of Newcastle and the Hunter, who now know that their football team is secure." Within days, Tinkler's operatives had started implementing dramatic changes, even though they would not formally assume ownership until the liabilities had been paid out and the bank guarantee put in place. Knights chief executive Steve Burraston was the first to go. The former Bradken Rail general manager, who initiated contact with Tinkler in 2008 and had previously been on friendly terms with him, paid the price for his role in an unsuccessful 11th-hour rival bid, known as the Patron's Trust, backed by multi-millionaire Andrew Poole. Burraston had also stamped his cards with a television interview in which he sounded less than convinced about Tinkler's bona fides. "They [the Knights board] said they've weighed up the risks that are involved in the deal and also the commerciality of the deal," Burraston said. "In all deals there is risk. And there is risk in this deal, but ... they're taking Nathan at his word that he's going to do the right thing by the club." Burraston's abrupt departure, apparently without even clearing his desk, left Tinkler's right-hand man Troy Palmer, a novice in sports administration, in charge of both the Knights and Jets. A 33-year-old chartered accountant from Maitland, Palmer was working as chief financial officer for Bluetongue Brewery when he contacted Tinkler on spec, offering his services. "I thought: 'It's only going to cost me a phone call and the time to write an email'," Palmer told the Newcastle Herald's James Gardiner. "If I got a knockback, there was no skin off my nose. Fortunately, Nathan responded almost immediately and the next day we were shaking hands." Palmer said he "cherished" his friendship with Tinkler: "We hit it off from the very first meeting. We both love our sport. I enjoy sitting in his lounge room on a Saturday afternoon watching the races and having a beer." Palmer may have been an L-plater in sporting administration, but he lacked little in confidence. He also had Nathan Tinkler's full support - who needed experience? Even before Tinkler's takeover had been approved, speculation was mounting about a coaching appointment that, months earlier, Novocastrians would have dismissed as an outlandish proposition. But in a massive coup, master coach Wayne Bennett - who six months previously won the 2010 premiership with St George Illawarra, after collecting six with Brisbane - signed a four-year deal. Bennett was initially tipped to leave the Dragons and re-join Brisbane. Then it seemed certain Russell Crowe would lure him to South Sydney. When he agreed to join Newcastle, saying he had been excited by the "challenge" of coaching the Knights, many reached an alternative conclusion. Speaking to The Australian, Souths legends Bob McCarthy and George Piggins called it as they saw it.. "I think they threw the Bank of England at him," McCarthy said. Piggins added: "Money speaks all languages." It was reported that Bennett had accepted an unprecedented deal worth between $7 million and $10 million, which included massive bonuses for winning grand finals. "I sat down with Nathan and was struck by his passion and knowledge of rugby league," Bennett said in a statement. "Private ownership appeals to me. I like it. This guy wants to take Newcastle to another level. He wants our game to capture the imagination of the Hunter like never before ... the Knights to be the benchmark of rugby league in this country. "That is the type of challenge that appeals to me. The Knights have already won two premierships and have been a great club despite struggling with their finances. And that's where Nathan Tinkler comes in." Bennett's appointment meant that a "bitterly disappointed" Rick Stone would have to stand aside as head coach. Stone, however, was retained as an assistant, on an even higher salary, as reward for espousing the Tinkler gospel during a pre-ballot advertising campaign. In the meantime, Stone got on with the job of trying to steer his team into the play-offs while Bennett, as if by remote control, rearranged Newcastle's roster from afar. Back-rower Cory Paterson (Cowboys) and rookie five-eighth Beau Henry (Titans) left mid-season, having been told they were not required, while Mark Taufua, Isaac De Gois, Antonio Kaufusi, Cameron Ciraldo, Shannon McDonnell and Con Mika were also moved on. In quick succession, Newcastle announced a number of high-profile recruits. Test-team regular Darius Boyd, ball-playing forward Adam Cuthbertson and outstanding rookie Alex McKinnon, born and raised in Aberdeen, would follow Bennett from the Dragons. Kade Snowden was only too happy to take Tinkler up on his aforementioned offer. Veterans Danny Buderus (Leeds) and Timana Tahu (Penrith) jumped at the chance to finish their careers with their home-town club, while Maitland junior Robbie Rochow was hoping for more game time than he was getting with Melbourne. Former Newcastle centre Matt Gidley was installed as CEO, barely 12 months after retiring from a 15-year playing career, although he appeared to defer many meaningful decisions to Palmer and Tinkler. Excitement was approaching fever pitch among Knights fans, but it was tempered on June 30, when the Newcastle Herald revealed on the front page that Tinkler had failed to pay out the club's liabilities and produce the bank guarantee by the agreed deadline. Inexplicably, the whole deal was in doubt. Confused supporters were left querying why a man reportedly well on his way to becoming a billionaire could not secure a $20 million bank guarantee. All manner of convenient excuses were offered to muddy the waters, but eventually it was agreed that Tinkler would produce a non-refundable $3.5 million deposit, before the bank guarantee was belatedly secured in mid-August. The guarantee would be renewed annually, and would revert to $10 million in 12 months, plus CPI inflation. If at any point in the future Tinkler was unable to honour the obligation, Tew shrewdly insisted on a clause that would allow members to buy the Knights back for a dollar. "I look forward with anticipation at a positive future, a prosperous future, and the opportunity for the Hunter Sports Group to lead this club into an exciting new era," Tew told the media when contracts were finally exchanged. "I trust that they will look after this very, very much-loved community asset and this icon of this local region." In the circumstances, considering the distractions, it was a remarkable effort by Stone to guide his team into the play-offs. After 12 wins and 12 losses, the Knights finished eighth before bowing out in the opening round of the finals with a gutsy 18-8 loss to minor premiers Melbourne. The defeat sounded full-time on the colourful career of 36-year-old utility back Adam MacDougall, after 158 club games, 87 tries and two grand final victories with Newcastle. "Whilst I'm disappointed to go out, I couldn't be happier with the career I've had," MacDougall said in the dressing room after his last game. "I achieved everything I set out to achieve and everything there is to achieve. I've got no regrets. I left the field today having given 100 per cent. I didn't have anything more in my body physically and I walked off with my head held high." MacDougall said, with hindsight, it was hard to believe how quickly his career - featuring 11 Tests and 11 Origins - had gone: "You feel like you blink and it's over." Before the dust had even settled on Newcastle's season, incoming coach Bennett was dragged into an unwanted controversy when Knights prop Mark Taufua - moved on to Cronulla despite having a year to run on his contract - fired a parting broadside on Twitter. In a rambling series of tweets, Taufua revealed Bennett was in Newcastle secretly meeting Knights players just days before the Dragons played Brisbane in a do-or-die final. "Just laughing about Wayne Bennett! Dis guy is coach of da Dragons but is havin a meeting wit all my boys," Taufua tweeted. "Sounds like I'm hating but he's a 9ball and I wish he was a player so I could fold him like my washing bahahahahaba #EatDeez." Taufua's tweets came as news to St George Illawarra officials and players. Dragons CEO Peter Doust insisted he had "no doubts about Wayne's commitment to the club", while Bennett himself refused to discuss the matter. It was nonetheless viewed widely as poor form.
Retribution was swift, and harsh. Taufua, despite having played his last game for Newcastle and complied with their request to walk away from a valid contract for 2012, was fined $5000. He was relieved the sanction was reduced from the month's salary ($12,500) the club's new management initially threatened to withhold, largely because skipper Kurt Gidley argued on his behalf at the disciplinary committee hearing. In a statement issued by the club, Taufua was quoted as saying: "I accept the fine issued to me for breaching club policy and regret my actions." At the time, the Taufua incident - labelled by one of Tinkler's new executives as a "serious disciplinary breach" - seemed a side issue. Everyone was excited about the new era ahead, and season tickets for 2012 were selling at an unprecedented rate. As well as first grade, Newcastle also reached the play-offs in reserve grade and under-20s and won the SG Ball (under-18) title in 2011. The club appeared in healthy shape. With the addition of Tinkler's cash, Bennett's expertise and some class players, fans were entitled to assume the only way was up. Danny Wicks emerges from court during his drugs trial. What could possibly go wrong?
Hard Yards: The Story of the Newcastle Knights. Available to purchase from theherald.mybigcommerce.com/books/ $19.95
