And to further boost the Knights hopes of upsetting Parramatta at Rockhampton, coach Adam O'Brien expects both Origin prop Daniel Saifiti and veteran forward Jesse Sue to prove their fitness and take their place in the 17-man squad.

Saifiti hasn't played since tearing the medial ligament in his knee against the Sharks three weeks ago while Sue was withdrawn from the Broncos game on Saturday after pulling up with a tight hamstring after the side's captain's run the previous day.

"Daniel has looked good at training so while he has some stuff to get through, I'm more and more confident he'll be right to go," O'Brien said.

"Jesse just pulled up a bit tight during the captain's run but I think he'll be okay by next Sunday. All the signs look good. He's got a far bit of power in his leg."

As for Klemmer, he may just be forced to grin and bear it to get on the field against the Eels after suffering a painful rib cartilage injury early in the second half against the Broncos.

O'Brien is confident his prop will be able to contribute despite the discomfort.

"It didn't pop out again after the game which is a good sign," O'Brien told the Newcastle Herald. "He'll get a needle and have it strapped up pretty tight so I'm confident he'll be right to go.

READ MORE:

"When they continually pop out again, they are generally the ones you really worry about but that hasn't been the case with him. He'll do everything he has to do to get out there."

While the 35-22 defeat to the Broncos left plenty of people ready to write off the Knights chances against the Eels, O'Brien found a lot of positives, not the least the contributions from his young players.

After trailing 18-4 at halftime and 24-4 when Mitchell Pearce and Kalyn Ponga were given an early mark in the second half, the patched-up Knights fought back from 34-10 down to get within two converted tries with more than 10 minutes left.

Seasoned prop Josh King led the way up front but had great support from young tyro props Jirah Momoisea and Pasami Saulo while Phoenix Crossland and Simi Sasagi more than held their own when injected into the game in the second half.

Stand-in hooker Chris Randall was tireless, scoring a try and making 51 tackles, while Jack Johns had some good moments that included scoring his first NRL try.

"Those young blokes, Jirah, Pasami, Simi and Phoenix - none of them have played any footy at all," O'Brien said.

"To go to Brisbane and be still in there fighting towards the end of the game - it's a bloody big effort from those guys. I really liked the fact they had a real crack and fought hard to win the game there at the back-end."

O'Brien said he will be more than confident if forced to call on either Momoisea or Saulo to play against the Eels on Sunday if needed.