Newly appointed Newcastle coach Justin Holbrook is confident the lessons he learned at the Gold Coast Titans will help him reverse the fortunes of the NRL wooden spooners.

Holbrook spoke publicly on Friday for the first time since the Knights announced he had signed a three-year deal to replace Adam O’Brien.

The 49-year-old will take control of the NRL cellar dwellers after a season that delivered only six wins and ended with a 66-10 last-round hammering from Parramatta.

The last time Newcastle slumped to such a low ebb, it lasted for three years, when the club endured a hat-trick of spoons between 2015 and 2017. Holbrook is backing himself to avoid a similar fate.

There is a sense of deja vu about his challenge, as the Titans were also wooden spooners when he took charge ahead of

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