Newcastle Knights head coach Adam O’Brien has revealed his team came close to forfeiting their Round 20 NRL match against the New Zealand Warriors, following a severe virus outbreak that swept through the playing group less than 24 hours before kick-off.
Up to 12 Newcastle players were in doubt for Sunday afternoon’s clash at Go Media Stadium, with most of the squad confined to bed and unable to eat in the lead-up to the match.
Despite the odds, the Knights pushed the Warriors to the edge before a last-minute try from Leka Halasima sealed a dramatic 20-18 win for the home side.
During the Fox Sports broadcast, it was revealed that Knights assistant coach Kurt Gidley even brought his boots to the ground in case he was needed to take the field, highlighting just how close the club came to not fielding a team.
MORE: Controversy erupts over 'rubbish' no-try call in Warriors nail-biting win
"Really proud of the playing group considering what they've been through in the last 48 hours, we had 12 of them in bed over the last 24 hours," O'Brien said during his post-match press conference.
"It was a busy morning on the phone to docs and staff running around trying to get medicine and food, trying to get some guys to eat.
"The vast majority didn't get to eat before kick off, they couldn't hold it in. So it chopped and changed, I wrote the team sheet out about four times this morning.
"We would have had to forfeit if a fair few of them couldn't take the field."
MORE: WATCH: Nelson set for ban after elbowing incident
Despite the circumstances, Newcastle led late in the game thanks to a shaky Jack Cogger field goal, while Tanah Boyd missed multiple late-game opportunities including a penalty goal and a field goal attempt.
A final field goal attempt was charged down, setting up Halasima's match-winning try.
O'Brien acknowledged his side's resilience but also expressed frustration over certain second-half refereeing decisions.
"There's some stuff there we have to own as well. We bombed two or three in the first half. We aren't shying away from that," he said.
"They proved costly the ones we bombed, but there was some stuff there that was hard to take in the second half."
The Newcastle Knights face the Canberra Raiders next weekend before receiving a bye, then entering the crucial final stretch of the NRL 2025 regular season.