The Brisbane Broncos completely outclassed the Newcastle Knights at Suncorp Stadium tonight, running out 53-0 winners.
It's the second time in as many weeks that Brisbane have kept their opponents scoreless, with the Broncos now having the best defence in the competition.
The Knights were dealt a big blow before kick-off, losing captain Jeremy Smith to a knee injury and it cost them dearly, with the Novocastrians never looking in the contest.
The Broncos were simply too good for an inexperienced Knights side that suffered injuries throughout the match, finishing the game with only one healthy player on the bench.
Corey Oates and Anthony Milford were the main beneficiaries, finishing with three tries each in what were brilliant performances from both 21-year-old's.
Ben Hunt was also outstanding, finishing with three try assists and a try of his own as Brisbane sent a message to the rest of the competition.
Newcastle lost hooker Tyler Randell to injury early in the second half and the Broncos struck soon after. In an unbelievable turn of events, Jack Reed batted the ball back from over the dead ball line and Oates pounced to score his third try of the game and make the score 26-0 in the 46th minute.
The injuries kept coming for Newcastle, with winger Nathan Ross leaving the field with concussion in the 47th minute.
In the 53rd minute, James Roberts ran around the Newcastle defence from the scrum and found Jordan Kahu in the process. The New Zealand international made no mistake, crossing in the corner superbly and then converting his own try from the sideline.
Hunt showed his class in the 57th minute, stepping off his left foot and throwing a dummy to break Newcastle's line and cross to the right of the posts. Kahu converted successfully to make the score 38-0.
Hunt chipped for Joe Ofahengaue in the 70th minute and the bench forward made no mistake in his kick chase, scoring his first try for the Broncos in the process. Kahu converted to make it 44-0.
A slick backline move from Brisbane's right edge gave Kahu his second in the 75th minute as the Broncos hit a 48-point lead.
A Newcastle mistake in the 77th minute led to Milford's third try of the night as Brisbane scored their 10th try and broke the 50-point barrier to make it 52-0.
Milford rubbed salt into the wounds of the Knights, kicking a field goal after the siren to finish the match at 53-0.
Earlier, The Broncos lost Alex Glenn minutes into the first half after the second-row forward copped a heavy knock to his hip from Sione Mata'utia's knee.
Not long after, the Knights lost Jarrod Mullen for the match after a terrible head knock left him badly concussed.
Corey Oates opened the scoring in the 8th minute, making it the fourth time in his last eight appearances that he has scored the first try – the score 4-0.
A Corey Parker penalty goal extended the Broncos' lead to six in the 16th minute, after hooker Andrew McCullough was tackled centimetres from the try line by an offside Jack Stockwell.
Milford crossed in the 21st minute after a beautiful inside ball from Hunt put the livewire five-eighth over for a four-pointer. Parker converted successfully to make it 12-0.
Oates got his second try in the 25th minute after Milford made a mesmerising solo run that beat several Knights defenders. He then found Oates with a great ball and the score jumped to 16-0.
Glenn returned to the field in the 31st minute and seconds later Milford joined the two-try club as he latched onto a perfect Hunt grubber kick to score to the left of the posts. Parker made no mistake with the conversion and the Knights were suddenly looking at a 22-0 deficit as halftime approached.
Brisbane Broncos 53 (Anthony Milford 3, Corey Oates 3, Jordan Kahu 2, Jordan Kahu, Joe Ofahengaue tries; Jordan Kahu 3, Corey Parker 3 goals; Anthony Milford field goals) Def. Newcastle Knights 0 at Suncorp Stadium. Crowd: 30,394
