When he arrived in Newcastle from Taree in 1994, all 16-year-old Danny Buderus wanted to do was make the Knights' Under-17s.

Fourteen years, 220 NRL games, 24 Tests, 21 State of Origins and countless junior, lower-grade and other representative matches later, Buderus formally announced the end of his Knights career yesterday.

An MRI scan had confirmed he had ruptured the biceps tendon in his right arm in the final minutes of Newcastle's 38-24 victory over North Queensland two nights earlier. He will undergo surgery next week, and a clean-up operation on a troublesome knee injury, but hopes to make his Super League debut for Leeds within six months.

The 30-year-old NSW and former Australian captain spent Sunday coming to terms with the fact he had made his final appearance in Newcastle colours, something he had hoped to do on his own terms in the last home game of the season against Melbourne on Saturday.

That would have been in front of former teammates on the club's traditional Old Boys' Day, but, instead, he will be inducted into their ranks and cheer for the Knights from the sidelines.

"I've lived every boy's dream, I guess, to play - but I didn't get the fairytale, I suppose," Buderus said. "But I've lived something through a professional sport, something I set out to do as a young kid, and I ticked a few boxes along the way. So I'm very happy to have achieved that, especially at this place. It's such a huge part of my life."

The 2004 Dally M Medallist said he hoped his work ethic would rub off on his now former teammates so they could experience the elation of winning a premiership with the Knights, as he did in 2001. "We've come through a pretty hard time over the last two years, when a lot of things were said about this club, and it hurts," he said. "But … this place, there's no better team to play for when the town's really behind it … I'd give anything for the guys to be in a grand final and realise how much this football team means to this town.

"To do that, it's hard work, and that's the one thing I've always tried to instil in them. I'm not the quickest, I'm not the strongest, but I'd like to think I'm right up there in competitiveness. If I've left a little bit of that in the boys, then I'm pretty happy."

Buderus, who will miss Australia's World Cup campaign in October and November, said that although he would miss the start of next season, he was looking forward to starting his two-year contract with Leeds. "It's tough to say goodbye," he said. "Actions are easier than trying to speak … Hard work is easier than trying to think up something smart to say, so that's hopefully the mentality the boys have got as well."