Newcastle Knights confident they can overcome poor Brookvale record

NEWCASTLE'S dismal record at Brookvale Oval suggests Sunday's do-or-die clash against the Sea Eagles will likely be a mountain too steep to climb.

NEWCASTLE'S dismal record at Brookvale Oval suggests Sunday's do-or-die clash against the Sea Eagles will likely be a mountain too steep to climb.

However Knights captain Danny Buderus insists the ghosts of the past haven't weighed down the Knights this season and he's not expecting his teammates to start getting spooked now.

"That's the beauty of this group of players,"Buderus declared yesterday.

"I'm about the only one that's been around long enough to know just how tough it's been for the Knights to win down there."

For the record, Newcastle has only won on two occasions at Brookie in the club's history. They smashed the Eagles 50-16 in 1998 and won 26-12 in 2006.

Buderus played in both games. But he has been on the receiving end too.

"You've got to give it to Manly and the fortress they've been able to create down there,"he said.

"You've got to really admire them for that."

Buderus' confidence that the hoodoo won't affect the team on Sunday is borne out by what has already happened this season.

A fortnight ago, the Knights had just their fourth win in 19 appearances in Canberra, and a week earlier they broke a seven-year run of defeats in Auckland.

"Our record at those two grounds was brought up before both games but to this group of players, it didn't mean anything,"Buderus said. "It won't be any different on Sunday.

"We'll be up for it. It's not a good time of the year to be playing for nothing so we know what we have to do to keep the momentum going and what it's going to take.

"The challenge is there for us and it's just a matter of rising to it.

"We beat them up here a few weeks back but that's not going to be any added motivation for them.

"They'll be looking at the bigger picture and just be wanting to keep building on what they've done over the past few weeks."

The Knights yesterday named an unchanged lineup to face the Eagles following Monday's win over Cronulla.