Knights falter, Storm surge

Newcastle captain Andrew Johns has ripped into his team's performance, labelling it "appalling" after the Knights stumbled to a 30-18 NRL loss at Ericsson Stadium yesterday.

Johns' comments are the harshest self-appraisal of a side since South Sydney's Adam MacDougall was fined $10,000 for slamming his team's effort in the 44-4 loss to Wests Tigers last month.

Johns told Fox Sports immediately after the match the performance was "awful" after the Knights lost their third-straight game.

Elsewhere, Melbourne coach Craig Bellamy says veteran five-eighth Scott Hill would be "right at home" in a NSW jersey after leading the table-topping Storm to a convincing 22-12 NRL win over Canberra yesterday.

Relegated to Premier League after a horror start to the season, former Test star Hill has been touted - alongside former team mate Brett Kimmorley - as a possible halves solution for the Blues after their Origin II thrashing.

The 29-year-old, who is tipped to join English club Castleford at the end of the season, says he is focusing only on the Storm.