Knights coach Adam O'Brien and Immortal Andrew Johns have come up with a left-field approach they hope will lay the foundations for the transformation of the side's attack from pedestrian to potent next season.

With the club's senior players are not due back at pre-season training until Wednesday after two months off, O'Brien has revealed he, Johns and coaching assistants Willie Peters and Blake Green have already met with key playmakers, Kalyn Ponga, Jayden Brailey, Jake Clifford and Kurt Mann to go over changes to the way the side will attack in 2022.

The unlikely meeting place - the pool table at O'Brien's Merewether home.

"We've had three or four sessions around the pool table talking about different strategies of how we want to play and just moving the pool balls around and working on what our attack might look like," O'Brien said.

"We've had Kalyn there on his own and with Brails, Cliff and Kurt as well. It's been about showing them we like the look of this or we like that look.

"Joey's been to the fore with it and the pool table has been a really useful tool actually. It's been really positive but obviously it's going to be about transferring it from the table out onto the training paddock."

O'Brien says Johns' involvement and the decision to bring in other club legends Kurt Gidley and Steve Simpson to work part-time with the academy squads has been a great step forward.

"The coaching and support staff we've put together - I can't speak more highly of them," O'Brien said.

"You always learn something when Joey is here, whether you are a coach or a player. He's really meticulous in his planning which has impressed me and so have his ideas.

"He's just very detailed, expects perfection in that area and there is a real good dynamic there already between him, Willie and Greeny."

O'Brien warns any attacking focus won't come at the expense of the side's defence.

"I'll definitely be allocating more time for attack but there'll still be the emphasis on defence. Defence is about character and while we've improved, it's still not ingrained yet so we won't be dropping the ball in that area.

"There is some stuff I'll be talking to the group about that hurts you during the year that becomes fatal in finals - they eliminate you, you're dead, so we are not where we need to be there and I'm not happy with it.

O'Brien said the five minute period in the Eels semifinal loss when they scored two tries still haunts him.

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