With the full NRL draw out for 2026, teams and their fans will have circled dates in their calendars.
Must-win games, key outings, rivalry clashes.
No team is going to win 24 from 24 throughout the course of an NRL season that is wildly tough to predict at the best of times, but clubs will know the key games they must win.
For fans, neutral or supporters, here are the five biggest clashes to watch for each and every NRL side throughout the 2026 season, kicking off in Las Vegas on the first weekend of March and winding itself across Australia and New Zealand over the following six months.
Newcastle Knights
Round 1, vs North Queensland Cowboys, at Allegiant Stadium (Las Vegas), Sunday, March 1, TBC
Round 5, vs Canberra Raiders, at McDonald Jones Stadium, Sunday, April 5, 4:05pm
Round 13, vs Parramatta Eels, at McDonald Jones Stadium, Saturday, May 30, 3pm
Round 21, vs Sydney Roosters, at McDonald Jones Stadium, Friday, July 24, 6pm
Round 26, vs New Zealand Warriors, at Go Media Stadium, Sunday, August 30, 2pm
The Knights start their season in Las Vegas under the coaching of Justin Holbrook for the first time, so that will be an obvious one to kep an eye on.
They have had some quality clashes with the Raiders in recent years, so that Round 5 match is one pencilled in, while Dylan Brown's first game against his old club at the Eels comes in Round 13.
If the Knights are going to be in the mix, then games against the Roosters and Warriors on the road in the final six weeks of the season seem the time to prove it.
