Eels out to avenge recent horror loss to Knights: Moses

Mitchell Moses admits the humiliation of a 30-4 loss on home turf against Newcastle earlier in the season is motivation enough leading into Friday night's clash with the Knights at McDonald Jones Stadium.

The Eels were embarrassed in front of their home fans in round 13, a defeat that sparked an internal review into the club's woes following a pre-season brimming with promise.

Moses left the paddock in that heavy defeat with a knee injury, but the defeat hurt more as the Eels hit rock bottom to a depleted Knights outfit.

"We've got to get them back for the time they got us," Moses said.

"We weren't happy with our performance that night, they put a clinic on us. I wouldn't say it was a turning point, we 've got to worry about what we can control."

Newcastle will welcome back Mitchell Pearce in a major boost. The Knights have struggled without their influential playmaker, recording two wins from their last nine games.

"He's a class player and what he was doing with them was special," Moses said.

"They've been missing him and he is a big part of his team. We're going to have our hands full with him coming back.

"We've got to be a lot better. We're taking small steps to getting close to the win we need."

Moses refused to talk about the club's recruitment plans aside from lauding the addition of former NSW winger Blake Ferguson for 2019.

Eels skipper Tim Mannah added it was understandable the club were chasing high-profile recruits after an unhappy season.

"We're professional athletes, we've got to learn and get to a stage in our careers to accept it," Mannah said.

"It's part of the sport but the boys have been professional in the way they've handled themselves in preparing for games and focusing all their energy on games. That's all we can control at the moment."

The Eels remain on the bottom of the Telstra Premiership ladder but are just two points behind the Cowboys and Bulldogs.

"We've just go to try and win as many games as possible. We've got to finish the year well and get what we can out of it," Moses said.