DYLAN Watkins has been "supporting the boys" of the Newcastle Knights for more than two decades, and not even an international trip across the ditch can hold him back.
The Mayfield mega-fan had booked flights to New Zealand within just hours of the team's sensational home win against Canberra on Sunday.
He'll be flying the blue and red flag among a sea of blue, green, red and white when the Knights take on the Warriors in another do-or-die NRL clash on Saturday, but has promised to cheer as loudly as he can.
"I'm going to be over there for three nights to support the boys," he said.
"I'm looking forward to it, there's probably going to be a lot of Warriors fans there so it's going to be very hostile, but it's going to be a lot of fun."
Mr Watkins has been going to Knights games since he was a little kid, more than 20 years ago, and can't imagine his passion ever wavering.
"Mate, I've always lived in Newcastle, so I'm going to hopefully live and die in Newcastle," he said.
"I was at the 2001 grand final and hopefully we get another grand final win, but we've got to beat the Warriors first."
Mr Watkins wants to walk away with the win, but said being part of the club community during such an epic season was special either way.
His message to the Knights?
"Just be proud of yourselves boys, back yourselves, just go out there and fight for our city and the club," he said.
Mr Watkins has been to seven away games this season alone, and has picked up friends in pubs across his years following the Knights.
He'll make the trip on Thursday with the Central Coast's Jarrod Irwin, who's also taking his teenage daughter Abbie.
The two fans connected after running into each other at Knights away games about a decade ago.
After the nail-biting match on Sunday, it was an easy decision to book flights and game tickets for Auckland.
"I was like, well, yeah, gotta support the boys," Mr Watkins said.
He told the Newcastle Herald that the Knights would have to "turn up" on Saturday night when they faced the Warriors at Mount Smart stadium.
"You can't expect to just walk through games, you have to compete for the full 80 minutes, if not longer," he said.
"It's going to be a close game ... they're just going to have to bash them up through the middle."
It's been a rollercoaster season for the Knights, who have now won 10 straight games heading into the knock-out semi-final.
But, Mr Watkins' support never wavered.
"I saw glimpses at the start of the season that we were going to be in for a good year ... so it's no big surprise, we just needed time to gel," he said.
He'll no doubt book tickets to Brisbane if the Knights come out on top on Saturday.
Newcastle is expected to have a presence in Auckland on the weekend, though it will be a far cry from the sell-out crowd at McDonald Jones stadium on Sunday, which exploded when the Knights won 30-28 in extra time.
Waratah's Lachie Mills told the Newcastle Herald he's been a fan for years and has also booked flights and accommodation to watch the Knights in Auckland.
"As someone who has supported the Knights their whole life, this is definitely a big opportunity," he said.
"I didn't want to miss it.
"Myself and the rest of Newcastle are extremely proud of how far the boys have come this year."
