Ponga looks to quit Knights over fears he’s ‘wasting prime years’

Kalyn Ponga has been speaking to a rugby union player agent in New Zealand as he looks to end his ongoing deal with the Newcastle Knights two years early and swap to the fifteen-player code as soon as this season.

The report comes on a bombshell day for the Knights, with news already breaking the club is going to dump Adam O’Brien at the end of the year.

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While nothing formal has been put in writing yet, the Knights fullback is preparing to request a release that would instantly make him a free agent for negotiations and would free him up from October or November 2025. He could then swap to rugby union for 2026, or take up a contract with another rugby league outfit if the offer is good enough.

A Sydney Morning Herald report says Ponga, 27, has made the call over fears he’s “wasting his prime years.” The Knights have barely played NRL finals since he joined the club in 2018.

Interestingly enough, The Sporting Base understands Knights brass may be open to the split, especially with local junior Fletcher Sharpe (who is out injured for the rest of the season) a very handy replacement for the wantaway Queensland star.

Should Newcastle green light Ponga leaving early, they would then slot Sharpe in as their long-term number one — he’s already signed through to 2028 on a cheapish deal — and would use the freed-up $1.4 million they’d then have for 2026 and 2027 to try and sign a superstar halfback. Dylan Brown is already joining the club for the ’26 season.

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For Ponga, rugby in New Zealand is the most likely destination, especially after he described playing for the All Blacks as the sporting “pinnacle” when he was grilled on the topic some years ago.