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Rising Newcastle star Tex Hoy is pushing for his NRL debut with the Knights after scoring a try against the Sydney Roosters in a trial game in Gosford.
Newcastle NRL coach Adam O'Brien will have a selection headache for round one, with rising star Tex Hoy furthering his reputation as a star of the future.
Hours after he was upgraded to the Knights' top-30 NRL squad, the 20-year-old scored a slick try against the Sydney Roosters on Saturday night in their final pre-season trial.
The versatile local junior can play five-eighth, centre or fullback, and slotted in to cover for Kalyn Ponga for the final 35 minutes as the Knights beat a second-string Roosters 58-0 in Gosford.
After his promotion to O'Brien's top 30, he is eligible for NRL selection in round one and is pushing to make his debut, potentially on the wing.
Halves hopefuls Kurt Mann and Mason Lino also put in solid performances alongside star halfback Mitchell Pearce to further their claims for selection.
The Knights led 18-0 at halftime and scored 10 unanswered tries to overpower the Roosters at Central Coast Stadium.
A week after winning the World Club Challenge in England, Roosters coach Trent Robinson rested all of his stars for their final pre-season hit-out.
As a result, the Roosters were thoroughly beaten by a close to full-strength Knights team.
The Knights took time warming into the match, taking until the 25th minute to score through second-rower Mitch Barnett, who barged over close to the line for the first of two tries.
New hooker Jayden Brailey also scored off a dart from dummy-half, while Pearce put in a slick chip for Ponga to collect on the run and score close to halftime.
Fellow Knights recruit Gehemat Shibasaki was also impressive in the centres, combining with Hymel Hunt, tipped for a move to the wing in 2020.
The former Brisbane centre scored a try and set Hunt up for another in the second half.
The Knights will play the Warriors at McDonald Jones Stadium in round one, while the Roosters will face Penrith at Panthers Stadium.
