Knowles developed into a stand-off with his club Birkenhead Park and could also play centre three three-quarter. For his solitary England cap, a 1931 Five Nations against Scotland at Murrayfield, Knowles played stand-off.[3] He twice toured overseas with the British Lions, visiting New Zealand and Australia in 1930, then Argentina in 1936. A regular Cheshire representative, Knowles retired as the county's most capped player.[4]