11 Dec 2014 10:14am
The Newcastle Knights NRL side has signed a new front of jersey sponsor to replace Nathan Tinkler's Hunter Ports and the club is set to unveil a range of new sponsorship initiatives ahead of the 2015 season.
The Newcastle Knights NRL side has signed a new front of jersey sponsor to replace Nathan Tinkler's Hunter Ports and the club is set to unveil a range of new sponsorship initiatives ahead of the 2015 season.
Hunter contracting brand Newpave Asphalt has joined the Knights as front of jersey sponsor on a single-year deal, with a two-year option for extension.
Jarrod Johnstone, the club's general manager of commercial operations, told Sponsorship News Newpave was a newly formed brand, with the Knights sponsorship to be used as a "launching pad".
The partnership will be officially launched at the team's corporate golf day later this week, and Johnstone said B2B networking across the club's partners would be a major activations focus for Newpave.
The new partnership ends a period of turmoil for the club surrounding the position. Former owner, mining magnate Nathan Tinkler, sponsored the club through his Hunter Ports venture from 2012 to 2014, but was forced out of the club in May due to payment disputes with staff and players.
Hunter Ports was one of three jersey partners to depart the Knights at the conclusion of the 2014 season.
As Sponsorship News first reported, Hunter Ports, Sportsbet (upper back) and WesTrac CAT (lower back) have all concluded their sponsorship arrangements with the side.
Sponsorship News understands the club will not sign a sponsor for the upper back of jersey position in 2015. Johnstone said an innovative merchandising tie-in would take the spot instead, with details to come next week.
It is Newpave's first nationally-reaching sponsorship. The brand provides asphalt paving, heavy haulage, equipment and contractor services to the Hunter mining and manufacturing industries.
It marks a continuation of Newcastle's mining-focussed sponsorship roster. Other Knights sponsors involved in the industry include Aurizon, Mining NSW and a host of smaller sponsors and suppliers.
The new partnership means only two sides, the Gold Coast Titans and Cronulla Sharks, are yet to sign front of jersey sponsors for the 2015 season.