Klemmer: 'We're a better footy side than that'

Knights prop David Klemmer is not shying away from what he and his teammates need to do to fix things after the rout by the Sydney Roosters.

No-one likes a 38-point thumping. And particularly when 30 of those points were scored in the last 18 minutes of the game.

That's what happened to the Knights at the SCG on Saturday. They were in good touch with Roosters for 60 minutes - never more than a converted try away - and then suddenly five tries rained down on their heads.

"It was pretty frustrating. It just wasn't our game style," Klemmer told NRL.com as he gingerly walked around the sheds post-match after taking quite a battering.

"We didn't build any pressure, they had all the energy, they had all the ball. We had to keep defending their possession - that's not the side we are."

Klemmer tried his hardest. He made 175 metres off 20 runs; made two tackle busts and three offloads alongside 33 tackles. But the scoreline made him look like had nothing to show for his solid 70 minutes' work.

"It is fixable; it definitely is. We just have to be honest with ourselves on where and who we want to be," Klemmer said.

"If we think we are finals football material, and we do, then we've got to be fair dinkum right now and fix it up real quick. 

"We'll have to have a tough review of that game; identify some things; come together and go back out and play much better footy."

Klemmer wouldn't hear of any excuses - even though he must have found the Holden State of Origin series draining with his "in" and "out" appearances through injury. 

"I've been around a while now and I don't believe that is a factor in any shape or form. I know how to play good footy so I'm just to keep doing my job for this footy side.

"It's just not individuals here - there's a whole footy side that needs to reach out and pull each other through."

Klemmer says he and other senior players like Mitchell Pearce, Shaun Kenny-Dowall, Jamie Buhrer and Aidan Guerra would be getting around the team doing some rallying as well as reality checks.

"Definitely. Monday it starts with not shying away from what happened here. It's disappointing but we've got to get over it and get ready for Friday night against the Tigers."

The Knights remain in eighth spot on 18 competition points, but they have five clubs below them within two points: the Warriors 17, Broncos 17, Sharks, Wests Tigers and Cowboys all on 16.