Newcastle has recorded just two wins at Brookvale Oval in the Club's history, but winger James McManus remains confident the Knights can cause on upset when they take on Manly at home on Monday night.
While McManus admits the prospect of playing at Brookvale is daunting, especially given his side's recent form, the consistent winger insists the men in red and blue are ready to perform and fight for their season.
"Obviously we are underdogs, but I think we are certainly going down there with the belief that we can win," McManus said after training on Friday.
"It’s going to be a tough game, because Manly are a tough team no matter where they play.
"But at Brookvale it’s a bit of fortress for them and we’ve got to make sure we turn up and play our hearts out, because that’s what it is going to take.
"We are looking forward to the challenge and a bit of redemption."
The Knights have copped plenty of criticism in the wake of their indifferent start to the season, but McManus says it hasn't affected the playing squad.
In fact, he says the poor form has only brought the team closer together.
"We’ve talked about our own standards and what we’ve been dishing up has been too inconsistent and just not good enough," he admits.
"We put a lot of pressure on ourselves and we’ve just got to make sure we abide by the standards that we’ve set for ourselves.
"Probably across the board all of us have been down on form.
"So there is certainly no one in the squad pointing fingers and blowing up.
"There is no point looking over our shoulder at what someone else is doing, we’ve got to get ourselves right individually and then it will come together.
"We’ve trained really well this week and everyone has come in with a lot of intensity this week at training and everyone is really focused at doing a good job."
The Knights will welcome back forwards Willie Mason and Korbin Sims for Monday's clash against the Sea Eagles and McManus believes their return is a huge boost for the team.
"It will be good to have them back," he says.
"They are energy players as well and they bring a lot to the squad.
"It’s been a great week at training so far and it’s great to have everyone back in the fold.
"So everything is looking good for Monday night."
Meanwhile, Joey Leilua limped off the training paddock with a hamstring injury on Friday morning. Leilua was booked in for scans on Friday afternoon, with results expected in the next 24 hours.
