Newcastle will have close to 500 more games of collective first-grade experience than opponents Manly on Sunday but have vowed not to underestimate the depleted visiting side.
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Should the two teams run out at McDonald Jones Stadium as named this week, the experience of Newcastle's 17 players will amount to 1370 first-grade games, accounting for Jackson Hastings and Dom Young's time in Super League.
Manly, however, will field a side that has made only a collective 893 appearances.
The Sea Eagles, after a resounding 42-14 win over Canberra on Sunday, are set to be without skipper and halfback Daly Cherry-Evans (Queensland), and star fullback Tom Trbojevic (NSW).
Tom's brother, Jake, the inspirational leader of their forward pack, has been ruled out for six weeks with a calf injury as well.
Four other forwards are also sidelined in Josh Aloiai, Kelma Tuilagi, Aaron Woods and Ben Trbojevic.
The absences make for a significantly different Manly line-up compared to when the two sides played out a 32-all draw in Mudgee on April 1, and have resulted in Newcastle being installed as $1.35 favourites with the bookmakers, while the Sea Eagles are north of $3.
"It's always a good contest between the two sides. It was that out at Mudgee," Knights coach Adam O'Brien said.
"We'd be foolish to expect anything different just because they're missing some personnel.
"I know that they'll come up with a point to prove without their guys, and we won't fall into that trap."
Only two players in Manly's side have made more than 100 appearances; centre Brad Parker (108) and winger Reuben Garrick (101).
Newcastle have seven players in the same category, including co-captains Kalyn Ponga (103) and Dane Gagai (256), Jackson Hastings (150), Lachlan Fitzgibbon (109), Adam Elliott (128), Jacob Saifiti (127) and his brother Daniel, who plays his 150th game on Sunday.
Jacob Saifiti said Manly still shaped as a formidable outfit despite their key outs, and would be a challenge regardless of the difference in experience.
Five-eighth Josh Schuster rocketed back into form against the Raiders after a short spell from the NRL, and the likes of Parker and Garrick, along with Jason Saab, are regular try-scorers.
"They've got a really strong pack," Saifiti said.
"Taniela Paseka has been playing really good footy.
"I watched his game on the weekend and he had a really good game. Obviously [Haumole] Olakau'atu, he will be another one disappointed he didn't get picked in the Origin, so we're expecting him to be firing as well.
"Tom [Trbojevic] is out, but their back five are still [strong]. We always have a good game against Manly, they always turn up."
O'Brien said he would take little from the draw back in round five given the changes.
"I guess you take belief that if it takes up to 90 minutes, we can hang in there with them," he said.
"There were periods of that game that I thought we didn't handle well.
"They got a lot of tries on the last play, I think there were four tries on our last.
"We done a hell of a job on the five plays leading into it, but we need to make sure we stay alive for the full set."
Tyson Gamble was Newcastle's five-eighth against Manly in April and resumes the role on Sunday.
Ponga missed the game in Mudgee but has been named to play fullback after six appearances in the halves this season.
Lachlan Miller has been demoted to the bench.
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