AUCKLAND, New Zealand -- The Newcastle Knights have silenced a sold-out Eden Park and kept their remarkable NRL finals run alive with a gripping 12-10 victory over the New Zealand Warriors.
Leka Halasima crossed twice for the hosts, but tries to Fletcher Sharpe and Dominic Young -- both converted by Sandon Smith -- proved enough for Newcastle to book a preliminary final showdown with the Penrith Panthers.
Here are three things we learned from Sunday's semifinal.
Newcastle's kids are made for September
The Knights arrived in Auckland with the youngest halves combination remaining in the competition and a forward pack missing several established names.
None of that mattered.
Fletcher Sharpe and Sandon Smith looked anything but overwhelmed by the occasion, calmly guiding Newcastle through a hostile afternoon in front of a deafening Eden Park crowd.
Sharpe's first-half try captured exactly what he offers this side. After Bradman Best stepped, fended and burst into the backfield, the five-eighth remained alive in support, juggled the pass and finished the movement to level the scores.
Smith was similarly composed. His two conversions ultimately provided the difference between the sides, with the young halfback refusing to allow the occasion -- or the noise surrounding him -- to alter his process.
The Knights' youngsters were just as impressive without the ball.
Newcastle repeatedly scrambled to survive Warriors raids, with Greg Marzhew producing two crucial interventions in the first half - knocking down a pass with a try looming before bundling Dallin Watene-Zelezniak into touch moments later.
Their defensive resolve became even more important as fatigue arrived and the Warriors threw everything at them late. The hosts enjoyed multiple attacking opportunities but Newcastle continually found a way to shut the door.
Kalyn Ponga did not need to manufacture every decisive moment himself. His early linebreaks and constant movement kept the Warriors' defensive line occupied, creating opportunities for Best, Sharpe and Newcastle's outside backs.
That might be the most encouraging sign of all for Justin Holbrook.
The Halasima gamble almost saved the Warriors' season
Leka Halasima entered the weekend under an injury cloud and was only confirmed in the Warriors' starting side shortly before kick-off.
He then came within inches of dragging their season into another week.
Used in the centres, the powerful youngster was comfortably New Zealand's most dangerous attacking player. His combination of footwork, strength and acceleration caused Newcastle problems from the opening exchanges.
Halasima struck first after 14 minutes, crashing through a retreating defensive line after a set restart had given the Warriors momentum.
He continued to torment Newcastle's right edge throughout the opening half, producing a brutal fend on Sandon Smith before breaking into space. Only a forward pass on the final exchange prevented the Warriors from turning the opportunity into more points.
With New Zealand's season rapidly slipping away, Halasima delivered again in the 70th minute, surging over for his second try and reducing Newcastle's lead to two.
LEKA HALASIMA CAN DO IT ALL 🤯 #NRLFinals
— NRL (@NRL) September 20, 2026
Telstra Moment of the Match pic.twitter.com/H140LFIECa
The conversion attempt sailed wide, leaving the Warriors needing another score, but Halasima's performance offered a glimpse of what their attack could increasingly be built around.
He had spent much of the season establishing himself as one of the competition's most destructive young forwards. On Sunday, despite the hamstring concern and a positional switch, he showed he can be equally damaging when given room on an edge.
The concern for Andrew Webster will be how isolated that threat often appeared.
Outside of Halasima's individual power, the Warriors struggled to consistently create space or manipulate Newcastle's defensive line. Their other apparent second-half try, to Ali Leiataua, was correctly overturned for an obstruction.
Halasima nearly carried them across the line, but in a sudden-death final, nearly was not enough.
The Warriors saved their errors for the biggest moments
Finals football rarely demands perfection. It does, however, punish carelessness.
The Warriors learned that lesson in brutal fashion.
They had chances to take control of this contest but repeatedly released the pressure through an error, a mistimed pass or a poor decision.
The most costly arrived immediately after half-time.
With the scores locked at 6-6, Watene-Zelezniak attempted an offload under pressure and instead passed the ball directly to Bradman Best. Newcastle capitalised just a couple of plays later, shifting right for Dominic Young to score the try that ultimately decided the match.
It was far from the Warriors' only missed opportunity.
A promising first-half break from Halasima ended with a forward pass. Kurt Capewell followed a superb tackle on Young and a powerful carry with an error. Leiataua's second-half effort was erased by an obstruction, while several attacking sets close to Newcastle's line ended without the composure required to convert pressure into points.
Individually, none of those moments had to be fatal. Together, they told the story of a side that tightened up when its season was on the line.
It continued a worrying trend from the previous week. The Warriors had led the Dolphins 16-8 after an hour before conceding 18 unanswered points. Given a second opportunity at home, they again failed to close out a match they had every chance to win.
That makes this exit particularly painful.
New Zealand finished second and earned two home finals, yet their season ends with consecutive defeats and the sense that their best football deserted them at precisely the wrong time.
The Warriors' rise under Webster remains significant, while players such as Halasima provide ample reason for optimism. But the next stage of their development must be learning how to regain control when a finals match becomes frantic.
The premiership contenders still standing know how to make those moments feel routine.
For the second straight week, the Warriors made them feel overwhelming.