KNIGHTS coach Brian Smith said yesterday he was baffled by his team's treatment from the NRL's referees this season as statistics revealed the full extent of Newcastle's penalty purgatory.

Newcastle's issues with on-field officials escalated in Monday night's 18-4 loss to Melbourne at Olympic Park when they were caned 10-3 in the penalty count by referee Ben Cummins.

In eight games this season, the Knights have conceded 65 penalties, more than any other team in the competition.

They have also received only 46 penalties in their favour fewer than any team except Penrith (38). Their penalty differential of minus-19 is the NRL's worst. Brisbane, at plus-16, are the benchmark.

Smith conceded after the loss to Melbourne that his team had been guilty of some "unprofessional" infringements but was mystified why his team received only three penalties on Monday night one of which came when the Storm were pinged in possession for obstruction and had a try disallowed.

"It's not so much the penalties we've conceded that worries me," Smith said.

"It's the ones we don't get ... we had about 150-odd plays in the game, and apart from two penalties we got on our first play, they apparently never held us down, they were never offside, they never made a high tackle, they were always straight at marker, and they didn't infringe on all the other myriad of possible penalties.

"I just find that a bit hard to comprehend.

"I know what we need to work on to stop conceding penalties.

"But I don't know what we've got to do to get penalties."

Smith said that penalties on the first tackle provided little advantage for the attacking side.

"Effectively we did not get one repeat set in the whole game," he said.

"You just can't build any pressure ... we're certainly trying to play a good brand of footy and an attractive brand of footy, but it's very hard when you can't get a repeat set in the whole game."

Asked if the Knights deserved as statistics suggest to be rated as the NRL's most undisciplined team, Smith replied: "Someone would need to point out to me and nobody from the NRL has what it is that would lead anyone to believe that we're the most undisciplined team.

"Nobody's telling us that we're not doing this or not doing that.

"There are a few small things we're trying to attend to, but no one has indicated to us that we're worse than anyone else.

"Is it just coincidence that in the vast number of games this year we've found penalties going against us?

"I don't understand why that would be."

NRL referees co-ordinator Robert Finch indicated Cummins had received a favour able review at yesterday's official debriefing.

"Mick Stone reviewed the game and he'll probably be doing his report tomorrow," Finch said.

"I didn't sit in on the debrief, but because there was a complaint about penalties, every penalty was looked at very, very closely.

"Just because there were a lot of penalties that doesn't really worry us. Penalties are there for an obvious reason.

"I know Brian has been working hard with his team on reducing penalties, but throwing balls away, and lifting tackles, and taking a kicker out late with an elbow, they're all mandatories.

"You can't do much except blow those sort of penalties."