Out-of-contract Sydney Roosters star Blake Ferguson has met with Knights coach Nathan Brown to discuss a possible move to Newcastle.
Less than two weeks after the 28-year old lead the Roosters to a 18-16 win over the Knights at McDonald Jones Stadium, Ferguson returned to Newcastle and toured the club's training base.
Ferguson reportedly met with Brown over lunch to discuss the the winger's playing future.
“There have been no negotiations at this stage and I don’t have an offer from the Knights,” Ferguson’s manager Sam Ayoub told Fairfax Media.
“I have spoken to the club and they said they have an interest, but that is the extent of my discussions with them. There has been nothing about length of contract, money or the level of interest other than to ask 'what is Blake doing next year'.”
The Knights have maintained a strict policy for potential recruits to first visit their facilities before opening negotiations on a deal.
And considering Ferguson's history of off-field dramas, it makes sense that Newcastle would do their due diligence on him before committing to a contract.
Ex-Rooster Connor Watson said Ferguson would be a great fit for the Knights.
“I’d love to see him come up here – he’s awesome,” Watson told Fairfax Media.
“He’s in a really good mindset at the moment, Fergo. He’s really focused. There are players you just love to play with, and he is definitely one of them.
“He lives for those moments and loves the hard stuff, and you just have to look at his stats at the moment to know the head-space he is in. He’s running for over 200 metres a game, which is unbelievable.
“If you have a player like that in your team, getting you on the front foot like he does, it’s a massive help.”
Watson added that Ferguson, who gave up alcohol late last year, had "turned his life around."
“I think he has grown up heaps. He’s got two kids now and he hasn’t had a drink all year so it just shows you how committed he is to turning his life around,” Watson said.
“Look, he’d be awesome up here and like I said, having someone next to you who always wants the ball in those key moments and will do anything to get you out of trouble – they’re the teammates you want.
“You’ve only got to look at what he did to us a few weeks ago when we played them – he killed us up here.”
Another one of Ferguson's former teammates, Knights winger Shaun Kenny-Dowall, would also love to see him join Newcastle.
“I’ve had a few chats to him and he is pretty excited, but he is going to have to decide for himself,” Kenny-Dowall told Fairfax Media.
“He’s a good friend of mine and a good bloke and a great football player, so it will be interesting to see what happens.
“He can play fullback and centre and wing and averages around 200 metres a game, and we would be silly not to want him here.”