Newcastle’s hammering of North Queensland can reignite their season as they aim to make a finals charge, according to superstar Kalyn Ponga.
The Knights enjoyed their biggest win of the year on Saturday afternoon, with their 42-6 flogging of the Cowboys equalling their biggest ever over the club.
While the two points were crucial, the fact they were dominant throughout may be even more important.
No team in the competition has gone on runs with confidence like Newcastle.
They have endured losing streaks of five and six matches, while they also strung together seven straight wins through the middle of the season.
“I’m hoping it ignites a bit of a run there,” Ponga said of Saturday’s win.
“It was a good win and there is a lot to build on. We need to keep that same mentality.
“Our season has been pretty up and down.
“A rollercoaster has up and downs so hopefully we can go back up. It’s not going to just happen for us. We’ve got to build on this week like we did last week.”
Saturday’s clash with the Wests Tigers at Campbelltown is now vital for the Knights.
Hooker Connor Watson will race the clock to play in the match, after suffering a minor medial injury in his left knee on Saturday.
Both teams are on 20 points, and will realistically be out of the running for the finals with a loss.
Newcastle then have Gold Coast and Penrith to finish, meaning their fate is well and truly in their own hands with a positive for-and-against.
If Newcastle do reach the finals, they’ll become just the second team in a decade to qualify after losing six straight during the season.
St George Illawarra in 2015 and Brisbane in 2012 are the only other sides to have done so, but both were knocked out in the first week of the finals.
“There’s no doubt getting a result like (the Cowboys flogging) you would hope gives confidence to some guys who have been a little quieter,” coach Nathan Brown said.
“But as a club we’ve just lost a lot of close games. If we’d won half the close games then we would be sitting here saying how good we’re going.”