Veteran Newcastle back Adam MacDougall says he can't deny former players' claims of racism at the NRL club, but he never witnessed any prejudice himself.

The 35-year-old has played stints at the Knights from 1997-2003 and 2007-10 and was a team-mate of Andrew Johns and Timana Tahu in the 2001 premiership-winning side.

He says he is shocked and disappointed to hear former stars like Robbie O'Davis and Tony Kemp claim racism was part of the Knights' culture.

"I can't comment on racism in the sense that I'm not of coloured skin," MacDougall told AAP.

"I'm not denying what these guys have said because obviously they're the ones it has influenced and they're the ones who have said it's happened so I'm not here to say they're liars.

"I can only talk from my own personal point of view and I think the great thing about the Knights, and always has been, and the thing I've loved about this club and the reason I've come back here was because the acceptance of being different is something ... we've been very strong on, whether it be personality, whether it be colour, whether it be culture.

"I personally believe that the Knights have always been a very diverse club and a very accepting club so I am shocked and disappointed in the comments of someone like Robbie O'Davis.

"Personally I can only account for myself. I've never had any racial prejudice against anyone at this club and, from what I've ever seen from the other players, I've never really openly seen anyone be a racist.

"I never witnessed any of that."

MacDougall marked former clubmate Tahu in Monday night's fiery 6-4 win over Parramatta and said the race row between the former Knights centre and club great Johns had saddened him.

"It's not good to see two blokes who I'm very good friends with and who I've won premierships with obviously in a place at the moment emotionally that's probably not very healthy," he said.

"It is (sad) and I genuinely feel for both of them.

"They've probably both been thrust into the spotlight with this whole situation and neither of them, I'm sure, want to be in the spotlight and it would have been a very emotional week for both of them.

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