‘Asked me if I care’: How Ponga went from ‘misunderstood ratbag’ to emotional live TV moment

There was a time when it looked like Kalyn Ponga cared more about a strawberry thickshake than what was going on at the Newcastle Knights.

These days he’s on the verge of tears when they win.

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Ponga has inspired the Knights to Sunday’s preliminary final against the Panthers against the odds and club great Matty Johns is backing him to lead the side to the grand final.

It was Ponga’s reaction after the Knights pulled off an upset win over the Warriors in Auckland last Sunday that raised eyebrows and illustrated just what the club now means to him after questionable behaviour in the past.

Foxsports.com.au takes a look at how Ponga went from a self-described “ratbag” to Newcastle’s leader and inspiration.

THE MILKSHAKE CONTROVERSY

In 2019, Ponga made his infamous “strawberry thickshake” comment after coach Nathan Brown was sacked with two rounds remaining in the season following a disastrous 46-4 loss to Wests Tigers.

When he was asked if he was sad to see Brown sacked Ponga replied: “I was at lunch having a nice strawberry thickshake, so was not too sad.”

The flippant remark was slammed by the likes of league greats Brad Fittler and Peter Sterling.

Days later, Ponga apologised for the comment, admitting it came across poorly, but that he was not being disrespectful, just his laid-back self, after Brown had earlier told him not to make a big deal about the sacking.

After the loss to the Tigers, Fox League’s Braith Anasta said: “We have to be honest if we don’t see him putting in the extra effort and not putting his body on the line and we need to call it out right? You never see him give up on a play, it clearly shows where the Knights are at right now.”

At the time, Ponga described it as a learning curve and admitted his parents were disappointed in his behaviour.

His laid-back attitude to all things has got him into trouble on other occasions over the years, even if much of the criticism, mostly from those who didn’t know him, was unfair.

TALENT HAS ITS PITFALLS

Ponga is a pretty lucky guy.

He was born with gifts most first grade rugby league players could only dream of.

Sometimes, however, it can have its negative side-effects.

Super-talented footballers like Ponga usually cruise through the junior grades and to the NRL.

And even when they get to the NRL a few special ones continue to cruise along despite it being by far the toughest league in the world.

Ponga fell into that category and when it comes so easy to a footy player, they can sometimes look lazy or even disinterested at training and during games.

There are examples of it in all sports. The more talented Mark Waugh was often called lazy compared to his twin brother Steve who seemingly had to work harder at his cricket.

Ponga’s talent probably means he’d likely struggle to be a coach one day if he wanted to be because you can’t teach what he does.

If it could be taught, every fullback would play like him.

Ironically, if a guy like him was to coach, he’d be a better chance of being a head coach rather than an assistant.

Ponga spoke to foxsports.com.au this week about the way he’s been viewed as he’s risen to become a State of Origin star and Dally M Medal winner.

“I’ve had coaches in the past that have asked me if I care and stuff like that,” he said.

“It’s important to me that my teammates know that I do and they have throughout the years, and I do like competing.

“I think they know now how dedicated I am, how committed I am, and how passionate I am about this club and winning.”

Ponga has had to read a lot about himself over the years at Newcastle.

And a lot of it has irked him, mainly in frustration because he believed he was being misrepresented quite a lot.

There was a moment a couple of years back when the Knights were scored against by the Dragons in Wollongong.

In the corner of the vision, Ponga slammed his hand on the ground a couple of times in frustration as his team struggled.

It was a brief moment, but showed the competitor inside him.

He said it’s been difficult at times to read articles questioning his commitment to the game.

“Yeah it does frustrate me a little bit. I understand the laid-back persona. I’ve always had that, it’s just who I am,” Ponga said.

“It actually helps me in some ways as well. I don’t really get too overawed by things.

“People have commented about the way I’ve gone about things in previous years and it’s nice that he (Justin Holbrook) just allowed me to be me.”

THE MISUNDERSTOOD SUPERSTAR

Of all the opinions out there, the only ones that really matter to Ponga are the thoughts of his Knights teammates.

Newcastle lock Mat Croker told foxsports.com.au that he felt “lucky” to have Ponga, not only as a teammate, but as a friend.

He said it’s been good to watch him grow as a leader, and defended the path he’s taken along the way.

“I think in terms of his leadership role, he’s probably been a little bit misunderstood at times,” Croker said.

“People take him as a fellow who’s too laid-back and doesn’t care, but I could tell you first-hand it’s the complete opposite.

“No-one gives more to this club than KP. He’s got no ego about him, KP. He’s a big superstar, but he’s got absolutely no ego.”

Croker said it’s been inspiring to watch Ponga lead the Knights to a preliminary final with two upset wins away from home in the finals.

It’s not surprising to see Ponga playing well in the finals given he’s starred at Origin level and he was arguably the best player on the field before he got sent off in Game I this year.

“He’s seen the highs and the lows and he’s flourishing at the moment on these big stages. I think the last two games have been some of his best, so I reckon this week he’s going to go to another level as well,” Croker said.

Knights forward Tyson Frizell has seen a lot in his 304 NRL games and arrived at the club three years after Ponga got there.

He told foxsports.com.au that it was only natural that Ponga would take time to become the clubman that the critics wanted him to be.

“He was still finding the type of person that he was, the type of player that he wanted to be. I’m a different player to when I first started and I guess he was thrown into the scene from a very young age and put in the spotlight,” Frizell said.

“He’s learned from his growth and the way he carries himself. From the outside he probably looked a little bit different.

“He’s a guy that’s always been a little bit laid-back but has always been a competitor.

“I don’t think people really saw that side of him, they probably saw just the flashy side of him in terms of the ability he had on the paddock.”

PONGA’S LEADERSHIP EVOLUTION

It’s no coincidence that Ponga has flourished under new coach Justin Holbrook.

The fact that the new coach told Ponga to be himself when he arrived was a clue that he knew the 28-year-old was the man to lead the Knights.

When Holbrook arrived for his first head coaching job at St Helens in 2017, one of the first things he did was remove the captain and install James Roby, much to his surprise.

When foxsports.com.au told Ponga what Holbrook did back then, he was stunned, but glad he wasn’t aware of it.

“I didn’t know that. I wouldn’t have even thought that he had done that. If I’d known I probably would have pretended that I was a bit more professional,” Ponga said with a laugh.

Ponga said the faith Holbrook has put in him has allowed him to flourish and he did it in a very simple way.

“What he’s done for me, obviously everyone’s commenting on how happy I am and stuff like that. He’s not taking the pressure off me but allowing me to be myself,” Ponga said.

“He obviously knows that I want to win and I want to compete. He allows me to just focus on my strengths and not sort of burden myself with what I’m not good at.

“He just said to be myself. I come in here every day, I know what I’m good at and just focus on that.”

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Holbrook summed up what Ponga was like when asked by foxsports.com.au.

“Kalyn’s highly skilled but highly competitive and that’s what I love about Kalyn. He’s relaxed by nature but he wants to win as much as anyone I’ve met,” Holbrook said.

Frizell has watched the ‘ratbag’ turn into an inspirational leader and it was on show last week when Ponga led the Knights to victory over the Warriors and admitted post-game that his emotions were getting the better of him.

“I guess you can see the emotional side of him now too, especially as a leader on the field and how much it means to him,” Frizell said.

“People don’t see the detail he goes into his preparation and into his craft and how passionate he is about the Newcastle area.”

When Ponga was interviewed by Fox League after the Warriors win he said: “I feel like crying”.

It was a far cry from the ratbag who prioritised his strawberry thickshake seven years earlier.

Unexpected emotions hit him and he immediately tried to control them while being interviewed.

“It was a weird one. There was a tonne of emotions going on. It was a bit of shock, not disbelief, I obviously always believed that we could win, but the fact that we actually did it, I was so proud,” Ponga said.

“There’s so many emotions going on and then just seeing all the boys and how happy they were, it was pretty emotional and that’s why we do it.”

Asked if he would’ve felt that way 18 months ago after a big win, Ponga said: “I don’t know, no probably not.”

“I’m really proud of this playing group, this club, the community that I’m in and the community that I represent. I understand it now that I’m older,” he said.

“I was a little bit of a ratbag back then. I just didn’t understand it as much when I was younger. I am pretty proud of it all now.”

THE MISSING PIECE OF THE PUZZLE

For years Ponga played a lone hand at Newcastle when it came to attack.

It was him or nothing, and it gave the Knights no chance of being a premiership force.

The issue was the Knights halves.

By the end of Adam O’Brien’s tenure in 2025, the club had used 35 halves combinations since 2020.

It gave Ponga virtually no chance to be able to truly showcase his skills.

He had no halfback running the team around the park while applying pressure to the opposition with game management.

It made life extremely hard on the superstar fullback.

But Dylan Brown’s much publicised 10-year, $13 million deal was a turning point for Ponga.

In the years leading up to Brown’s signing, Ponga’s future at the club, and in rugby league, was often speculated.

There were rumours he was going to join the Roosters or even leave the game altogether to pursue a dream of playing for the All Blacks.

But within months of Holbrook and Brown arriving at the club, he signed a contract extension to keep him at the Knights until the end of 2030.

Ponga knew that a world-class halfback was what he needed to win that elusive premiership.

“He (Holbrook) obviously did play a big role (in re-signing), and to be fair, Dylan Brown did as well,” Ponga said.

“I’ve always wanted to win (a comp). I feel like to do that you have to have quality players in your side, and I felt what that felt like (in the opening games playing with Brown). I just could feel that the club was in a good position. I’ve been here for so long and I didn’t really want to leave.”

THE FULL PACKAGE HAS ARRIVED

These days there’s no question marks over Ponga’s attitude or commitment to the Knights.

He’s the one all the players look to guide them.

Knights premiership winner Matty Johns broke down on NRL 360 on Thursday night when talking about what the club meant to him.

Like Ponga, after the Knights win, he nearly teared up.

He said earlier this week that it had been a joy to see Ponga turn himself into a man when talking to Cooper Cronk on ‘Matty and Cronk’.

“We’ve got to remind ourselves how far Kalyn Ponga has come. Remember he was criticised for the strawberry thickshake comment with Nathan Brown. How far he has come?” Johns posed to Cronk.

“Now he’s at the part where he’s representing the community. He’s on the doorstep of a grand final and he’s emotional about how much the Newcastle jersey means to him,” Cronk responded.

“That’s Kalyn maturing, that’s Kalyn understanding the game and the community, but that’s also just Justin Holbrook handing over a fair amount of responsibility to his captain to say, ‘This is the type of guy that this community and team needs’.”

Queensland Origin great Kevin Walters, another great playmaker in his day, said it wasn’t just off the field that Ponga had matured, but his footy was at its peak, which is scary considering he’s already won a Dally M.

“I feel like his Origin series was his best one so far with his consistency and his impact that he had on the series, and then this back end of the year for the Knights, he’s been very good,” Walters said.

“He’s understands his game and how he can impact games. That’s very important without overplaying his role. He’s just doing it really nicely and showing some great leadership skills.”

Walters said the fact that Ponga got so emotional after the Warriors win had a lot to do with his form during the finals series.

“We could feel the emotion coming out of him. Kalyn has been in our game for a long time now, and it’s his first preliminary final for the Knights, so that’s a thrill for him,” Walters said.

“It’s a good achievement for the Knights to get that far, and I’m sure that they’ll want to take the next step and be in the grand final. That was the emotion (for him) and it was a terrific win over there against all odds.”

While it seems like Ponga has got the mental and physical parts of being a professional footballer just right, the laid-back guy will always be there.

Asked about how winning the grand final will change his legacy in the game, Ponga responded with a relaxed attitude mixed in with the reformed leader.

“I’m not worried about my legacy. I’m not worried about that. I’m just worried about getting my job right, just preparing as well as I can,” he said.

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