Newcastle captain Aidan Guerra has urged the club's fans not to give up hope and believes the Knights are on the verge of breaking out of a month-long form slump.
The former Roosters forward admits the team's confidence has wavered during a four-game losing streak. A couple of those games were winnable, while last week they copped a 48-10 hiding from Cronulla.
Newcastle have a good chance to bounce back on Saturday against last-placed Parramatta at ANZ Stadium.
"Confidence is a funny word," Guerra said.
"Sometimes you feel that you have got it back as a player, but it just takes one little mishap on the field to put you back into that negative energy. For other people, it's a lifelong thing that you have. Everyone's different."
The Knights have leaked 146 points over the past four rounds, ranking them as the NRL's worst defensive team.
Parramatta are also looking to bounce back from a three-game losing streak, having won just two games in 2018.
"What we have got on Saturday is two sides coming up against each other in a position where they both believe they can win the game and are both desperate for a win," Guerra said.
The last time the two sides met was in the pre-season, where the Eels comprehensively outplayed the Knights in Maitland.
Despite Parra's struggles in 2018, Guerra expects an intense battle.
"This Parramatta side has got some good footy in them although they haven't seen results yet this year, so we need to come out expecting the best Parramatta side we've seen this season," he said.
"You try to judge a side on their best games, and their best games come from when the forwards are going hard, not making missed tackles and doing some damage through the middle.
"At the end of the day we are not going to have the ability to keep scoring 30 points a game to win, we have to start containing other sides."
While teammate Mitchell Barnett raised eyebrows when he questioned some of his teammates' desire to win, Guerra says it is all about keeping a positive tone, no matter how tough times get.
"I'm not going to question anyone's desire, because you don't get this far in the game without having some desire," Guerra said.
"I still believe that we have got the footy in us, and I am going into this weekend thinking we are a side that can win this game."
