Knights forward Lachlan Fitzgibbon has declared Newcastle "miles ahead" of where they were at as a team when they copped a 36-point drubbing from Penrith midway through last season.
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Four days after Nathan Cleary's average showing for NSW in Origin I last June, Newcastle were at the mercy of the halfback as he inspired the Panthers to a 42-6 win at McDonald Jones Stadium.
In the opening 40 minutes alone, Cleary scored a try, kicked a 40-20 that led to another and steered his side to a commanding 26-0 lead.
Newcastle's points came from a consolation try - the last of the game - in the 73rd minute.
The defeat, at the time, was the fifth Newcastle had suffered at home in six games after earlier hammerings from Manly (30-6), Parramatta (39-2) Melbourne (50-2) and Brisbane (36-12).
Fitzgibbon said the loss was a reminder of what the reigning premiers were capable of, but as an improved outfit the Knights would approach Saturday's clash at home as a winnable contest.
"It wasn't ideal," he said of the round 14 defeat, one of two losses to Penrith in 2022.
"I don't want to dwell on last year too much, they're a quality side. But we're miles ahead of where we were this time last year and the last time we played Penrith.
"We want to be up there with the best teams and we're going to go out there with the mindset of winning.
"We want to win and we believe we can win.
"It's shaping up to be a really good game."
Speaking after the 34-24 win over the Warriors on Sunday, Newcastle's third victory in six games, Fitzgibbon said the Penrith match should show how much improvement his side have really made.
The Knights have moved into the top eight for the first time since round four last year but are equal on seven competition points with ninth-placed Manly.
Penrith will be the first side from last year's top four that they've played this season.
Despite a slow start to their campaign including two one-point losses, the Panthers are chasing their third consecutive win after big victories over Canberra (53-12) and Manly (44-12).
"They'll be full of confidence, but I'm looking forward to it," Fitzgibbon said.
"They're the defending premiers and have got a really good side again. Everyone is out to beat them. It will give us a good guide of where we're at and hopefully we can come away with the win."
Sunday's victory was the first time the Knights had won consecutive games at McDonald Jones Stadium since rounds 15 and 16 of the 2021 season. They haven't won three in a row at the venue since the season prior.
Fitzgibbon said the club wanted to make the trip to Broadmeadow a tough one for opposition teams and despite a loss to the Dolphins, all three of the side's performances at home this season have been spirited showings.
"Last year didn't define us as players and this should be a fortress for Newcastle," he said. "We have spoken about making sure we show up at home and put in really good performances in front of the best fans in the business. I think we did that [Sunday]."
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