While Mitchell Pearce stole the headlines with a golden-point field goal that handed the Knights a 19-18 win over Manly on Friday, fellow club debutant Kalyn Ponga also managed to live up to his substantial hype.
Not only did the 19-year-old score a superb try inside the first five minutes , but the fullback also nailed all three of his conversions and showed real strength after copping some big hits.
Speaking after the match, Newcastle coach Nathan Brown acknowledged the significant hype surrounding the former Cowboy but conceded Ponga dealt well with the pressure.
"There's obviously been a lot of talk about Kalyn and I think we saw (why) tonight with that brilliant individual try," Brown told reporters post-match.
"He's such a gifted young player and there's a lot of hype."
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While the try was impressive, it was Ponga's physical resilience that most impressed Brown.
"What was most pleasing about (his try) was he got a heavy knock just before but he still wanted the ball," he said.
"It's going to get a lot harder for Kalyn, it's going to get a lot harder before it gets easier.
"There's going to be plenty of sides that look to kick high and give him plenty of stick.
"To get straight back up after copping the knock, want the ball, save a try as well and kick three from three on his first game for a 19-year-old kid that's probably got more hype than anyone ever had, I think we can all say he did a pretty good job for us."
Last year's wooden spooner's will look to build on their promising start against the Raiders next Sunday.
