Disconnected in Newcastle: Where the attack has gone wrong for the Knights

The Knights were shut out 28-0 by the Bulldogs in their Week 2 pre-season match at McDonald Jones Stadium. 

It was a comprehensive win for Canterbury and an uncomfortable mirror held up to everything that is currently underdeveloped in Newcastle's attacking game. 

A shutout even in a trial speaks to a failure to generate meaningful territory. cohesion, or offensive threat.

The Bulldogs were able to score freely, while the Knights couldn't break through their defence at all.

This isn't poor luck: it points to systemic issues in a new attacking structure constructed by head coach Justin Holbrook, which will need fixing before the Knights' Round 1 match against the Cowboys in Las Vegas.

Holbrook at the Titans struggled with players that can create with the ball in their hands and be a force in one way or another, so this isn't new, and that is not even the worst problem for the Knights.

One of the clearest issues was incompletion. 

Newcastle struggled to complete sets and string attacking sequences together. The 61 per cent completion rate and 18 errors left the Knights constantly on the backfoot.

It became impossible to build rhythm, and it was evident as the Knights rarely managed to stall the Bulldogs' line speed long enough to open up gaps.

Even when the Knights did get close to the Bulldogs' line, they failed to convert teritorial advantage into points.

The Knights defaulted to predictable carries with the ball and isolated offloads that were easily absorbed, lacking second-phase play.

With new recruits like Dylan Brown expected to be central to the Knights' attack, his influence was too limited. 

There was glimpses that showed Dylan Brown could shake up the cadence of the game with quick decisions direct at the line, but there wasn't a structure in place around him, as well as a lack of foundation laid by the forwards. 

None of Dylan Brown's strengths were showcased and for him to flourish, the Knights need to build attacking shapes that create space and allow Brown to run the ball.

They also need to add ways they can shift the ball and get their best on-ball creative players to hunt their matchups playing downhill with momentum and flow, that don't need their opponents to turn the ball over.

Sandon Smith, who started at halfback against the Dogs, had more touches of the ball than Dylan Brown.

Smith had 75 reciepts compared to Brown's 50... That can't simply happen in a team that not only has Brown, but also Kalyn Ponga.

The club also has players who at their best can attack the line with the ball in their hands and thrive on rhythm to combine well together on the edges.

The halves couldn't set the pace of their offence or link runners at speed, which meant their second-phase play didn't exist.

Their edges lacked touches and didn't test the Bulldogs defenders enough, allowing the Bulldogs to shut down the Knights inside options.

With the regular season not far away, the Knights must fix their completion rates and have fewer unforced errors, clarity on roles and combinations among the halves and outside backs, and create structure for their forwards to create a platform for Dylan Brown to operate on transition sequences with quick play-the-ball annd line pressure.

While pre-season results don't determine the fate of an NRL season, the Knights have shown a lot of signs that look very similiar to last season.

There is potential and signs Newcastle can build attacking sequences to their liking.

If they take inspiration from Dylan Brown's dominant run in the Pacific Championship for the Kiwis and how Parramatta unlocked his edge with sequences that involve the forwards running with him, there is opportunity for points to be scored on a game to game basis.