The Sydney Roosters insist their shot at an NRL three-peat is not in tatters after Friday night's humiliation and maintain they have the experience to bounce back.
Their 60-8 flogging from South Sydney was their biggest at the hands of their arch-rivals, coming at the worst possible time on the eve of the finals.
They also remain uncertain on the fitness of Jake Friend, who suffered a suspected fractured cheekbone following an early head clash in the heavy loss.
Friend was expected to undergo scans on Saturday, but the results have not been confirmed.
If Friend is out, the Roosters would lrely on Freddy Lussick or Lachlan Lam at dummy-half with Sam Verrills and Victor Radley already out for the rest of the season.
Regardless, Friday's heavy loss result has left them likely opening the finals against minor premiers Penrith, who have not suffered a loss since June.
Veteran forward Jared Waerea-Hargreaves admitted the whole night was a slap in the face.
But while such a pounding a week out from the finals would be the end of most teams, Waerea-Hargreaves had no such concerns given their history of performing in September.
"No doubt we know how to handle this situation," Waerea-Hargreaves said.
"We will marinate in all this hurt and frustration.
"It was a bit of a slap in the face to be honest ... we got what we deserved in all aspects of the game.
"But the belief is still very strong.
"We've all played together for so long now with each other. It hurts. We bite the bullet and we get on with next week."
The loss has left the Roosters needing to defy history to win the grand final, with no team having lifted the premiership trophy after conceding 50 points in a match.
However they do carry a significant advantage come finals.
They have the most finals experience of any top-eight team with 192 games between their fit squad, more than double that of Penrith's tally of 76.
All leaving them well placed to be cool under pressure.
"We just spoke (at the end of the match) about what we need to do and how we need to communicate and stay united and little things like that," Waerea-Hargreaves said.
"We will let it simmer over the next couple of days and then we'll get onto prepping for next week."
