It’s the four paragraphs on this very website that have eaten away at Newcastle coach Nathan Brown for more than two years.
Back in early December 2017 – with the ink barely dry on Mitchell Pearce’s lucrative four-year contract at the Knights – that Cronulla skipper Paul Gallen had the following to say in an exclusive column for Sporting News:
"At the Roosters, Mitchell shared a dressing-room with internationals and State of Origin players," Gallen wrote.
"That won't be the case at the Knights and I fear Mitch's rep career may be a casualty of having to do it all at club level.
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"The money and long-term deal at Newcastle was impossible to knock back at this stage of his career.
“I just hope his footy doesn't suffer as a result."
The former Blues skipper then added: “In my opinion, Newcastle are two or three years away from being a consistent top eight side.
“As for winning competitions, well, I just can’t see that happening for a long, long time.”
Brown responded at the time, hinting Gallen was angry because the Sharks had missed out on signing Pearce while bring up the club’s 2014 drugs scandal.
And he didn’t miss again after Newcastle saw off the Sharks in Friday night’s season opener, saying he’d be interested in hearing Gallen’s thoughts on the Knights now.
Gallen stands by his comments on Sporting News in 2017 and expects Newcastle to make the finals this year.
The Sharks captain said it ‘would be a major disappointment for the club, the coach and a proud rugby league town’ if they didn’t.