Newcastle has secured a place in the NRLW preliminary final for the fourth consecutive year, triumphing over Gold Coast with a compelling 34-20 victory.

In a thrilling match before their home crowd, the Knights dominated the first half, taking an 18-0 lead thanks to 63% possession and an impressive completion rate of 93%.

Despite a resilient fightback from the Titans, who managed to score four second-half tries, it took until late in the game for them to truly threaten the Knights’ lead.

Next week, Newcastle will face Brisbane at Lang Park and will be eager to improve on their previous encounter in round eight, where they suffered a heavy defeat of 46-16.

Knights halfback Jesse Southwell emphasized the importance of solid defense to support their play: “We will need to back up some of our errors with good defence. We made a lot of crucial errors, but our middle pack carried hard and took us forward.”

In their earlier match just two weeks prior, the Knights had also bested the Titans 28-22, with Southwell scoring 16 points from two tries and four goals.

During Saturday’s match, Southwell effectively utilized the wind, launching two high kicks towards Georgia Gray, which resulted in fumbled receptions leading to two tries for the Knights.

Titans’ coach Karyn Murphy responded by substituting rookie winger Phoenix-Raine Hippi into the game and benching Gray.

An increase in penalties by the Titans allowed Southwell to secure two penalties, paving the way for hooker Olivia Higgins to score just moments before half-time, further extending Newcastle’s lead.

Three minutes into the second half, centre Shanice Parker added a fourth try for the Knights, pushing the score to 24-0.

The Titans finally gained momentum, scoring twice in rapid succession: Jasmine Solia capitalized on a Sienna Lofipo offload, and centre Sarina Masaga crossed near the uprights, narrowing the score to 24-10.

The Knights responded with a fifth try from lock Kayla Rominiuk; however, the Titans were not finished yet. Hippi managed to score twice in quick succession, but Parker completed her double for the Knights, securing the victory.