The finals footy monkey may finally be off the Knights' back after seven years of mediocrity but now for the real challenge - transforming into a consistent top four team and genuine premiership contender.

That is what Adam O'Brien and his playing group must get their heads around leading into 2021. Playing in the finals has to be a given now. A fleeting appearance here or there is not going to cut it with a fan base that has been put through the wringer over the past decade.

Next year, the club will hold a 20-year reunion for the 2001 side, the last to win a premiership. Two decades is far too long between drinks.

So how does a team that limped into the finals and whose roar became a whimper just 15 minutes into their elimination semi against South Sydney, transform themselves into a heavyweight contender in the space of an off season? Where does the improvement come from and who will provide it?

How do the Knights take that next step?

A lack of genuine leaders has been an issue for the Knights for several years now and is something the club is attempting to address through mentoring courses and bringing in outside help.

You don't completely eradicate a losing culture overnight and that is the challenge for Adam O'Brien. He doesn't have a genuine, hard-nosed, out-spoken, win-at-all-costs leader within his playing group that others can follow.

Without them, you get the type of inconsistent, erratic, perfect one day, pathetic the next performances that have been dished up in recent seasons.

The onus is on the likes of Mitchell Pearce, Dave Klemmer, Mitch Barnett and new signing Tyson Frizell to drive the culture and the consistency.

You won't find a bad word from anyone about O'Brien's rookie year at the helm given their finals appearance and the hurdles he faced during the season with COVID and a huge injury toll.

When you are talking hard-nosed leaders, he fits that bill perfectly and apart from some games later in the season when some old bad habits resurfaced, there was far more resilience across the board in defence, a direct influence of his coaching methods and the first thing he needed to fix.

But given the way the game has gone with new rules opening up the contest, being able to attack has never been more important.

O'Brien was the assistant coach in charge of attack at both the Melbourne Storm and Sydney Roosters before he lobbed in Newcastle so he clearly knows his stuff in that area.

Just as well too because judging on what we saw last season, it needs some work.

In two and a half games last season, Blake Green showed us enough to suggest he will be the club's X-factor in 2021 provided he stays healthy after returning from a knee reconstruction.

Green's first game for the club was Mitchell Pearce's best for the season and it was no coincidence the skipper flourished with Green immediately carrying a share of the playmaking burden.

He also freed up Kalyn Ponga to do what he does best, roam around and be there to pounce when an opportunity presents itself rather then be tied to a certain structure.

Green's short kicking game is also one of the best in the business, an area the Knights haven't exploited consistently well with so much defensive pressure on Pearce.

Surely, after such an horrendous season for the club's number 9's, the so-called 'curse' will be lifted next season.

Two games was enough for Knights fans to get really excited about the potential influence of new boy Jayden Brailey. Cruelly, those two games to start the season were all we saw of him.

Signing Andrew McCullough from the Broncos eased the pain of Brailey's season-ending knee injury a little, only for him to become another injury victim and in the same game, it was season over for Connor Watson too.

Brailey's fast, accurate service, his darts after a quick play-the-ball and his defensive work-rate will make him a key performer and a player who could potentially drag the side up a rung or two on the ladder.

Too structured, negative, boring, predictable, clunky and too reliant on the brilliant individual skills of Kalyn Ponga and Bradman Best.

They were just some of the criticisms of the Knights attack last season and for the most part, it's hard to argue. There was so much emphasis put on fixing the side's defence last pre-season for obvious reasons but it came at the detriment of the attack.

O'Brien and assistant coach Willie Peters will be working overtime this pre-season, particularly after Christmas, to come up with new strategies, hopefully with less structure, to improve the side's potency with the footy. The new possession rules demand it.

A more permanent positional shift for Connor Watson to lock in a sniping role around the ruck has been talked about while the use of a forward in a ball-playing first receiver role to automatically give the attack more width has worked for the likes of Penrith and the Roosters and is an option. Could Mitch Barnett be that man?

One improvement needed is a far more effective and less predictable kicking game.

Deep down, does the playing group actually believe they have what it takes to consistently mix it with the heavyweights? Their early season win over the Canberra Raiders at Campbelltown and second half comeback to stretch the Storm in Gosford suggests they do.

But the lines become blurred again when they dish up performances like they did against the Roosters at the SCG and against the Titans with a home semi on the line. O'Brien may have exorcised some of the side's mental demons but there is much more to be done.

The most significant change from last season is the addition of NSW and Test backrower Tyson Frizell. He'll have a real physical presence on an edge and will be salivating at the thought of linking up with Kalyn Ponga in attack.

He'll also create more competition for positions and force the likes of Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Mitch Barnett, Brodie Jones and Jirah Momoisea to lift their games to another level to ensure a starting spot.

Green and Brailey will feel like new additions given their limited output last season, new prop Jesse Sue will add experience and a hard edge and it's exciting to think what level Bradman Best and the Saifiti brothers can take their games to if they have a full, injury-free year.

But coach O'Brien will largely be looking for his younger players - the likes of Tex Hoy, Phoenix Crossland, Enari Tuala, Gehamat Shibasaki, Star To'a and Pasami Saulo - to take another step up and establish themselves at genuine top graders.

How and where fans on Twitter believe the Knights can improve in 2021.

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AOB needs to impart some Storm secrets and have the Knights humming going into the finals.

@Chenzhang

Consistency in effort and performance.

@Cameron97822403

All systems [Blake] Green!!!!

@HullKiwi

Luck with injuries and play for the full 80 would be a nice start.

@NRL_SC_Addicts

Consistency week in, week out. Can't just play every 2nd week.

@Gebbs84

The injury curse is over. With consistent spine, we make the top 4!

@brady_102

Depth. This year has been the first in a long time where the Knights have first grade quality players competing against one another.

@QConnors10

Deadlier bombs, attacking depth, urgency in defence, Brandon Smith-like energy and desire. In fact just buy him.

@razzninho

Injury-free Brailey is the key. Will improve attack and defence structure out of sight and better managed mentality at tail end of the year.

@BPurser123

We need to close the gap between our best and worst. Second half of season, you never knew what knights you were gonna get.

@NewyKnightsFan

The future will be bright if Pearce can find a consistent dance partner.

@mjburkill

No key injuries. Injuries have plagued us for years and are inevitable. In 2021, this has to stop.

@KaneS1994

They need to believe again. This team has the best fans, live in the best league town in the world and they have been chosen to represent it. It's time to believe.

@Corabko

Having a permanent goal kicker above 80 percent.

@Robert_Crosby95

Need to see a big improvement in kicking game, entire team working to give our kickers time and space.

@boy_from_oz

Stability in the spine. Blake Green won't start the season at 6 but shoulder finish it. Pearce is in a race against his own age to deliver before he finishes up.

@jblesfooty224

Looking forward to seeing Bradman Best at his Best season 2021.

@Nobbys_Wizz

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