Michael Maguire’s Tigers in embarrassing loss to undermanned Newcastle Knights

Newcastle have put the cleaners through an insipid Wests Tigers in a 26-4 NRL win at a raucous McDonald Jones Stadium.

In a triumphant homecoming in front of 23,214 fans after eight months away, the Knights dominated a Tigers team who were their own worst enemy.

Adam Clune set up two tries while halves partner Jake Clifford also scored one of his own and had a hand in two others.

The win came with the Knights missing both Kalyn Ponga and David Klemmer to knee injuries and it keeps them unbeaten after two rounds.

In a one-sided affair, Newcastle enjoyed 56 per cent of possession and had 44 play-the-balls on the Tigers’ line.

Wests five-eighth Jackson Hastings is hammered in a gang tackle. His Tigers never looked like troubling a Knights side missing two of their best players in Kalyn Ponga and David Klemmer

Clifford had their first try when he grubber-kicked for himself to score after just three minutes, after an offload caught Tigers fullback Daine Laurie out of position.

Clune then took charge, kicking for a chasing Tyson Frizell who caught the ball at ankle-height and planted it down.

The five-eighth backed it up by sending Bradman Best over just after the break, making it 20-0 and putting the game beyond doubt.

Dane Gagai also claimed his second try in as many weeks on return to the club from South Sydney, while Dom Young also benefit from Clifford’s vision on the right.

The Knights celebrate one of their five tries in front of more than 23,000 ecstatic home fans. While the opposition didn’t test them on Sunday, they already look a far better side than the team that finished seventh in 2021

Luciano Leilua of the Tigers gets monstered by Bradman Best (tackling around the legs) and his teammates. Just two games into the season, the blowtorch will rightfully be turned on coach Michael Maguire after this display

A knee injury to Lachlan Fitzgibbon was the only real concern for the Knights, who could easily have won by more given their dominance.

The Tigers have numerous problems after Michael Maguire entered the season as the most under-pressure coach in the NRL.

They completed at just 61 per cent and ran almost 400 less metres than the Knights, with their only try coming through Ken Maumalo in the final five minutes.

In a first-half horror show, Jackson Hastings was put on report for a dangerous lifting tackle, while Tyrone Peachey was sin-binned for a blatant professional foul.

David Nofoaluma dropped a Laurie pass in their own in-goal, while a break through the middle was stunted when a Peachey pass hit the ground.

Stefano Utoikamanu also bombed a certain second-half try when he spilled the ball over the line, before Maumalo’s late effort stopped them from becoming the first team this year to be kept scoreless.