Has Sandon Smith swapped one uphill battle for a starting spot for another?

The four-year deal worth a reported $500,000 a season made Sandon Smith’s decision to leave the Sydney Roosters for Newcastle a no-brainer, especially with the shadow of Daly Cherry-Evans looming large.

But the other attraction for Smith was the possibility of a regular starting position in the halves, something he never managed to nail down at his former club.

Sandon Smith has joined Newcastle on a four-year deal.Credit: NRL Photos

As the 23-year-old declared upon arriving at the Knights in November: “[Number] Seven is the goal, that’s the dream, that’s what I want to be playing in … to come here and lock down a spot in the halves and be consistent, that’s my goal for this year.”

But two months into the pre-season, it appears Smith might still be the odd man out after Newcastle coach Justin Holbrook indicated this week that dynamic utility back Fletcher Sharpe was almost certain to feature in his first-choice 13.

“I’d like him in the starting side,” Holbrook said of Sharpe.

“I think wherever Fletcher plays, he’s going to have a big influence on the game. He’s an electrifying player. So wherever that is, he’ll be great. We’ll work that out over the next few weeks.”

Fletcher Sharpe has scored 22 tries in 26 games for the Knights.Credit: Getty Images

Holbrook insists he hasn’t settled on his team make-up yet and wants to use the pre-season to experiment with players in different positions.

So far, Smith has been training in the halves alongside high-profile signing Dylan Brown, with Sharpe filling in at fullback while skipper Kalyn Ponga recovers from a foot injury.

But as soon as Ponga is cleared to resume full training, he will be reinstated as Newcastle’s last line of defence.

After Holbrook ruled out the chances of Sharpe playing as a winger, thelogical conclusion is that Sharpe will be deployed in the halves. He played 12 games at five-eighth last year, scoring 10 tries, before suffering a season-ending kidney injury.

Brown, who has signed a 10-year deal with Newcastle worth a reported $13 million, will presumably be the first playmaker chosen.

Smith, who played 46 games for the Roosters, could be converted into a dummy-half, but Holbrook appears to have settled on Kiwi Test hooker Phoenix Crossland.

All of which suggests that, if all Holbrook’s big guns are fit and available for the season-opening clash with North Queensland in Las Vegas, Smith is likely to be a bench player. If the NRL proceeds with plans to increase the number of fresh interchange reserves from four to six, coaches will have the luxury of keeping a specialist half up their sleeve.

Sharpe has been an attacking weapon since his debut in 2024, scoring 22 tries in 26 NRL games. But he has rarely been required as a general-play kicker, largely because those duties were handled by the likes of Jack Cogger and Jackson Hastings, both of whom left the club at the end of last season.

“I’ve got one,” Sharpe said of his kicking game.

“But we’ve got people at the club who will spend a fair bit of time throughout this off-season to obviously progress that.

“It’s something I could definitely get better at. It’s something that’s definitely part of the job, playing in the halves, and I’ll be working hard to try and master it by the time the season comes around.”

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Smith, on the other hand, is an accomplished kicker, not just in general play but also in front of goal, as evidenced by a career strike rate of 83.5 per cent.

The Central Coast junior can be a point-scoring machine on his day, delivering two tries and seven goals for the Roosters in last year’s Anzac Day win against St George Illawarra.

That might not be enough to clinch the starting position he covets, although Holbrook has three weeks to weigh up his options before Newcastle’s first trial match against the Dragons on February 7.

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