Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time.<\/p>\n
The first time Tyson Gamble set foot in Newcastle, more than 13,000 Knights fans booed him, and current teammate Jacob Saifiti gave him an almighty spray.<\/p>\n
And on the big screen at McDonald Jones Stadium, Gamble gave them all a smart-arse grin.<\/p>\n
\u201cI put a bomb up and [Saifiti] half hit me in the air,\u201d Gamble said with a laugh of Brisbane\u2019s thumping win over the Knights last year, the first time he\u2019d visited the city he would soon help steer to the NRL finals.<\/p>\n
\u201cI laid on the ground, milked the penalty, bounced back up and then the whole crowd was booing me. I was on the screen smiling, carrying on.<\/p>\n
\u201cJ-Saf let me know about it at the time and then [again] as soon as I got here. It was a great start with the Newcastle fans.\u201d<\/p>\n
They\u2019ve quickly come around, though, and rightly so. His 47-game career has been a slower burn than most after starting in very rugby league fashion.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Knights five-eighth Tyson Gamble and Canterbury captain Reed Mahoney exchange pleasantries.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>NRL Photos<\/cite><\/p>\n \u201cMight have been a few too many beers, I\u2019m not too sure,\u201d he said with a grin, confirming that his parents missed the second half of his debut for Wests Tigers at Campbelltown in 2018.<\/p>\n In between, Gamble has spent five years becoming an overnight success with the Knights. Alongside Jackson Hastings, he is one half of an unlikely Newcastle halves pairing that has helped steer the club from the bottom four less than three months ago to a 10-game winning streak, a third straight sell-out crowd and an elimination final against the Raiders on Sunday.<\/p>\n Two years ago, a return to the tools \u2013 as an electrician, where he started on $8.30 an hour \u2013 looked more likely.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d been full-time for four years, had played three games and I was off contract,\u201d the former Bronco said.<\/p>\n Worth the Gamble: Happy times in the Hunter for Newcastle\u2019s No,6.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>NRL Photos<\/cite><\/p>\n \u201cThat 2021 season was a tough year for Brisbane and I got an opportunity in a game against the Titans.<\/p>\n \u201cI looked at myself and said, \u2018This is it. You\u2019re about to play your fourth game in your fourth year. You either take it now, or this might not be the career path for you.\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cFortunately enough, I played really well that game. We were down by something like 20-0 in 20 minutes. But we came back and I think I got man of the match.<\/p>\n \u201cI sort of realised that if I knuckle down and look after myself I can actually make a career of this. That was a bit of a turning point in my career. It was make or break: you either take this opportunity or get back on the tools.\u201d<\/p>\n Twenty-two games for Newcastle this year is the result of Gamble taking his latest opportunity. Bonuses triggered by that game time take his cut-price contract to more than $200,000 next season.<\/p>\n Assistant coach Blake Green\u2019s influence has helped the 27-year-old get ahead of the game and \u201ckeep my perspective around the ruck\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not suddenly hit with, \u2018Play the ball right now, I\u2019ve got to do this, this and this\u2019,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd with Jacko [Hastings] on the ball a lot, I get that extra time to see what\u2019s happening on the field, where defenders are tired or not really in the line.\u201d<\/p>\n His playmaking skills have undoubtedly developed. But Gamble\u2019s starving-dog-with-a-bone mentality will always be his greatest asset.<\/p>\n \u201cHonestly, I just hate losing, and always have,\u201d he said. \u201cAthletics days at school, card games, board games, I just hate losing. I don\u2019t want to lose. Footy was the same; I\u2019d cry as a kid if I\u2019d lost, or if we were losing, I\u2019d cry in the game because I just wanted to win.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, ball on the ground, you\u2019re the first bloke to it. If there\u2019s a tackle to be made, you make it.<\/p>\n \u201cThe niggles, the pushing and shoving, I love that stuff. If I can get somebody else off the game \u2013 whether it\u2019s for one play, two minutes or the whole game \u2013 I\u2019ll take that.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll wear it and I know a lot of people think I\u2019m a bit of a grub, but I\u2019ll wear that name tag if it helps the team.\u201d<\/p>\n Stream the NRL premiership 2023 live and free on <\/b>9Now<\/b>. <\/b><\/p>\n Sports news, results and expert commentary. <\/i><\/b>Sign up for our Sport newsletter<\/i><\/b>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Most Viewed in Sport<\/h2>\n
From our partners<\/h3>\n