KNIGHTS coach Adam O'Brien has no concerns about his players' respect for match officials as the NRL prepares to crack down on dissent.
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O'Brien confirmed Newcastle have been informed by head office that referees will enforce a zero-tolerance policy this weekend, in response to last week's controversy when Wests Tigers players appeared to berate inexperienced whistle-blower Kasey Badger.
Badger sent two Tigers to the sin-bin, including veteran prop David Klemmer, who was subsequently fined $3000 for dissent.
NRL head of competitions Graham Annesley warned players can expect "repercussions" if they overstep the mark this week, but O'Brien said his players - in particular the team leaders - always communicated respectfully with the referees regardless.
"We had an email, a generic one that went out to all the clubs," O'Brien said.
"But I don't see that as an issue for us. We've got Jayden Brailey and Kalyn [Ponga], and also Tyzon Frizell and Dane Gagai, and they all have a good rapport with the referees.
"So it's not something that we need to remind our players to do. We respect the referees because they've got a bloody tough job and they don't need people attacking them.
"I'd like to think I don't criticise many of their performances post-game either."
The Knights are the eighth most-penalised team in the NRL this year, conceding 44 in nine games, a minor improvement on last year's average. Their only player to have been sin-binned was Jack Hetherington.
"In the last month or so, we've been really disciplined," O'Brien said. "We've been one of the last-penalised teams in the comp, and that's something we're proud of."
Meanwhile, O'Brien indicated the Knights will persist with their no-frills game plan against the Tigers in Tamworth on Saturday, as they chase a third straight win.
Newcastle have strung together back-to-back victories in the past fortnight against the Dolphins (18-14) and Warriors (14-8), both of which have been founded on defensive muscle rather than the magic of Ponga, who is recovering from foot surgery.
"We want to end our attacking sets with a defensive mindset," O'Brien said.
"We want to set ourselves up to defend well each set ... so that some other team really has to work hard.
"You can hear that Newcastle chant every time we do a good job of it, so you can see it pleases our fans."
