North Queensland handed Newcastle a heavy 38-4 defeat in Townsville, leaving the Knights reeling after their sixth straight loss.
The Cowboys dominated from the outset, as Adam O'Brien's team went scoreless in the first half for the 11th time this season.
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In his post match press conference, O'Brien admitted that his side's confidence has taken a hit after another dismal outing.
"We lack some confidence," he said.
"I think you get to a point, when you’re having the season that we’re having, where during the middle of the week you train yourself into some confidence.
"Then when things go amiss and you bomb a couple of tries early in the game, it's just that our confidence and belief is eroding quickly."
The Knights trailed 20-0 at halftime and never looked like mounting a comeback. However, O'Brien pointed to glimpses of past competitiveness, insisting the group is not far from returning to that form.
"It wasn't that long ago that similar personnel were out when we played against some top-four teams and pushed them to golden-point," he said.
"That’s not that far away."
O'Brien suggested that their desperation is now hurting their execution, but despite the bleak outlook, he stressed that his side will strive for professionalism in the closing rounds.
"We want to win so badly," he said.
"[We're making] everything look really difficult and we’re making silly errors.
"It’s always important to perform, train and play for our jersey, we set ourselves high standards and whether we can make the eight or not, it’s just important that we do our jobs like professionals."
Eliminated from finals contention, the Knights still face high stakes in their remaining games, with O'Brien fighting to prove he deserves the head coaching job in 2026.