Arise, Sir Darius ... Knights sign Boyd as spree on stars continues
Robert Dillon
June 10, 2011
THE Newcastle Knights last night announced the biggest signing in their history - and promised that the recruiting spree was not finished.
As had been widely predicted for months, St George Illawarra, Queensland and Test fullback Darius Boyd will follow master coach Wayne Bennett to Newcastle for the next four seasons. Boyd is comfortably the most decorated import the Knights have signed since the club was founded in 1988.
The 23-year-old ranks as one of the NRL's elite players on his form over the past 18 months. He has won premierships with Brisbane and the Dragons, played three times for Australia, in nine Origins for Queensland, was third in the Dally M voting last year and collected the Clive Churchill Medal for his grand final heroics.
His signing is new owner Nathan Tinkler's third coup in the space of a month, after luring home former Knights Kade Snowden from Cronulla and Timana Tahu from Penrith, but this eclipses both of those deals.
And Knights chief executive Troy Palmer was confident more big names would follow.
''We're still working through our roster,'' Palmer said last night. ''There are still some positions to fill and additions to be made, although obviously not of the calibre of Darius. I think you could argue he's in the top five players in the world.''
Palmer confirmed the Knights, linked to St George Illawarra forwards Adam Cuthbertson, Jon Green and Nathan Fien, as well as former Newcastle skipper Danny Buderus, were looking to bolster their pack.
''There's still some work around the forwards, I would think, and also some support players to the run-on team,'' he said. ''But in the forwards, that's where I would see some additions would be made.''
The Boyd, Snowden and Tahu signings are likely to cost the Knights around $1 million a year collectively.
Throw in skipper Kurt Gidley, who recently agreed to a contract extension worth nearly $400,000 a year, and those four players will comprise a significant chunk of Newcastle's $4.2 million salary cap.
But Palmer said he had no doubt the books would balance.
''We're obviously conscious of the salary cap and working within the parameters,'' he said. ''We're well aware of the salary cap, and don't have any concerns regarding that.''
Asked whether third-party sponsorships helped clinch the Boyd deal, Palmer replied: ''There are obviously a number of parts to these marquee contracts. There are a number of different facets.''
Palmer said Tinkler was excited about yesterday's coup.
Newcastle fans will be eager to see their star-studded team in action next season, but many of the incumbent players are unlikely to be so excited. Cory Paterson has already moved to North Queensland and Mark Taufua has agreed to join Cronulla next year, after both men agreed to walk away from the final year of their contracts.
Hooker Isaac De Gois is set to return to the Sharks after a deal with Newcastle was taken off the table.
Prop Antonio Kaufusi has been told to shop around, despite being under contract next season. And free agents Wes Naiqama, Keith Lulia, Shannon McDonnell, Cameron Ciraldo, Marvin Karawana and Steve Southern face uncertain futures.
