The talented athlete, who has also previously played representative level rugby union, rugby sevens and AFL, played for the Knights in the Tarsha Gale Cup juniors competition in 2021 and said it was "a bit overwhelming" to be included in the Knights' development side.

"I've waited a really long time to get to this level, even if it is the development like side and to be a part of the first, kind of my hometown team, it's an exciting feeling and I'm really grateful," Clancy said.

Clancy played an integral role in the Knights' season as the club took out the competition's minor premiership before falling to eventual grand final winners St George Dragons in the semi-finals.

Clancy was named the competition's Player of the Year for her efforts alongside Jules Kirkpatrick, and will join Bree Chester, Jesse Southwell, Kayla Romaniuk, Matilda Jones and Tylah Vallance as part of the club's the development squad.

The club's first grade signings announced so far include current NRLW and representative players Bobbi Law, Caitlan Johnston, Jayme Fressard and Georgia Page as well as Singleton's Phoebe Desmond, with the team to be led by newly appointed coach Casey Bromilow

Clancy said she was hopeful of the opportunity to play in the NRLW alongside Desmond, who previously coached her in Singleton in league tag.

"She (Desmond) has been in the league industry for so long, like 10 plus years, and to finally have a competition where I might play with her alongside, it's like, whoa," Clancy said.

"She was someone who was a mentor to me and taught me a lot of the stuff that I do now, and now to get to play right next her it's a really crazy feeling."

Newcastle Knights and Wests CEO, Philip Gardner, said the announcement of the club's inaugural NRLW signings was a landmark moment in the history of the club.

"Our first ever NRLW signings are a fantastic result for women around the region and showcase our pathway to the elite competition of women's rugby league," Gardner said.

"It reminds me of when the original men's team was assembled in 1988, full of local players drawn directly from our local talent pool, brought together to form the Knights NRL foundation team."

The Knights had been due to play their inaugural season in 2021, but the competition has been postponed to early 2022 due to the COVID-19.

CEO Gardner also said he hopes the Knights can be a leader in the game for supporting female athletes and their part-time commitments and that he wants to see parity for NRLW players.

"One of our goals is to see parity right across male and female in our sport," Gardner said.

"The women are currently part-timers and are making huge sacrifices to play our sport. They're working, trying to build careers, jobs, homes and are trying to play football as well.

"It's a real inspiration what they're doing."

The rescheduled 2021 NRL Telstra Women's Premiership will kick off on February 27, 2022, with a triple-header scheduled in Newcastle.