Akuila Uate reckons it was "the best feeling ever".
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The last round of the season, a sold-out McDonald Jones Stadium and a 40-24 win over South Sydney to secure a spot in the top eight.
Oh, and the former Knights winger scored four tries to boot, equalling the club record of the time.
"I was over the moon. I think the whole team felt the crowd behind us," Uate, now 35, recalled of that famous 2011 victory.
"To get that far, and to win that game at home, that was awesome.
"Especially in front of the families, in front of the fans - the crowd of Newcastle.
"That was the best feeling ever, man."
Speaking to the Newcastle Herald almost 12 years on from that memorable night, Uate believes a similiar-sized crowd could again prove the difference for the Knights when they host the Rabbitohs on Sunday.
The match has officially sold out, and is set to attract the club's biggest crowd in close to a decade.
The 2011 match Uate starred in, Adam MacDougall's last-ever home game, was Newcastle's third-largest attendance ever - 30,729.
Only two games since, both in the 2012 season, have come close to those numbers.
Wayne Bennett's first game as Newcastle's head coach, the 2012 season opener, attracted 29,189. Later that year, 29,482 turned up for the Knights-Bulldogs match in round 22.
The biggest crowd since then came in late 2014 when 26,401 were on hand for the Rise for Alex Round match against the Titans.
"I loved playing at home," Uate said.
"There's something about Newcastle; they just turn up win, lose or draw.
"And that game [in 2011], we had to win.
"And we knew we had the fans behind us."
Newcastle had three consecutive losses before that 2011 thriller, and their victory - along with a healthy for-and-against record and other results - secured them eighth position.
Then-Knights coach Rick Stone said the huge crowd that night and scale of the occasion didn't dawn on him until shortly before the game.
"It probably took us all a bit by surprise, really," he said.
"I know we had to win to make the eight which was pretty important, and I suppose Newcastle fans and the Knights have a good habit of helping each other out when they need it.
"I remember coming in and thinking this is going to be a pretty big night, and people scrambling for tickets really late.
"It was one of those special nights.
"We probably just rode a bit off the electricity of the crowd; really loud, really boisterous and they really lifted our team."
As the Knights prepare for this week's 2pm clash, Stone urged the players to embrace the big crowd.
Placed seventh - a single competition point ahead of eight-placed South Sydney, a victory could prove decisive for Newcastle's finals aspirations.
They have three games left to play, but the Rabbitohs have two and a bye, which comes with a guaranteed two points.
"I think Kurt [Gidley], who would have been our skipper [in 2011], always recognised those occasions about the crowd, the team and the town," Stone said.
"It had been drilled into him from an early age ... and it was one of those occasions where, he always talked about not letting it slip, not letting that occasion pass you by and making sure that you make all these people walk out of here with a smile on their face, because it's so important to them.
"You can engage the crowd with a big kick-chase, big tackles and throwing people over the sideline.
"It's about doing that early and trying to keep that vibe throughout the game.
"They're playing with plenty of energy and I thought particularly that Melbourne game they engaged the crowd pretty well.
"The way they're playing, their effort and style, has been infectious."
