The Knights were left to rue the one that got away in Brisbane in Round 15 but will have taken plenty of positives out of their narrow loss to the table-topping Broncos.
With Kalyn Ponga at his electric best and Daniel Saifiti leading the way up front, the Knights led 20-12 lead with 12 minutes to play and were on track for just their second away win of the of the season before the Broncos conjured two late tries to escape 24-20.
The loss leaves the Knights one win outside the top eight and one point behind the Roosters, who are coming off a demoralising loss to the Panthers on home soil at Allianz Stadium.
Despite boasting a star-studded backline the Roosters have been held to 12 points or less in five of their past nine games, while their defence has also been a concern across that period, giving up 222 points at 24.6 per game.
The last time these sides clashed it was the Roosters storming to a 42-12 win at McDonald Jones Stadium in Round 19 last year - part of an eight-game winning streak that catapulted Trent Robinson's men into the finals in sixth place, where they were bundled out by the Rabbitohs.
If the Roosters are to be part of the finals action for a seventh straight season they need to find some consistency and rediscover the hard edge that has made them such a formidable force for the past decade.
Team News
Knights: Prop Daniel Saifiti dropped out on Friday with a chest injury so his brother Jacob starts in the front-row and Brodie Jones joins the bench. The return of back-rower Lachlan Fitzgibbon from a calf injury is timely with Tyson Frizell away on NSW Origin duty. The only other change to the side that pushed the Broncos to the limit sees Enari Tuala coming in on the wing for Greg Marzhew, who was not considered for selection due to failing to meet team standards after he missed the team bus the day after the loss to the Broncos.
Roosters: Joey Manu goes to fullback in the absence of skipper James Tedesco on Origin duty, Luke Keary shifts to five-eighth and youngster Sandon Smith is the new halfback. With Lindsay Collins in Maroons camp, Nat Butcher moves to prop, Sitili Tupouniua to second row and Naufahu Whyte is the new lock. Centre Billy Smith is back on deck after he was a late withdrawal from the Panthers game so Drew Hutchison goes back to the bench. Terrell May is the new face on the bench with Matt Lodge omitted. No changes in Friday's 24-hour update.
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Story first published by: NRL.com