In typical Bennett fashion it wasn't how he said it but what he said, that spoke volumes about his esteem for the men wearing the famous red V.

Bennett was pleased his side - which claimed top spot for a few nights at least - absorbed early pressure from the fired-up Eels, before marching to their fourth win in five games.

Their round five win came one week after an emotional 25-12 triumph over Bennett's former club Brisbane, who the Dragons edged for first place on for-and-against.

"I think the other obstacle for us was coming out of Brisbane after the result up there, I've known for a long time - that teams that play well up there don't often back up," Bennett said.

"Except the really good ones."

On Friday, the Dragons dominated possession in the first half, but Parramatta spent long spells camped in the visitors' red zone - and came away empty-handed.

Bennett nominated that gritty defence as the key ingredient of the Parramatta Stadium win.

"That first 20 minutes, I was really pleased with the way we stuck at it," he said.

"We had to guts this one out and we did that. The first 20 minutes was the key for us.

"Defence is always attitude. They've got a great attitude and a great belief in each other."

However, he was less forthcoming about his team's attack, which produced just three tries, including a touchdown to Wendell Sailor as the full-time siren sounded.

"We know where we're vulnerable and what we have to work on," he said.

Although the Dragons' less-than-lethal attack - scoring just under 15 points per contest, compared with conceding an average of 10.6 - has been a talking point, Bennett's concerns going into Saturday' clash with Newcastle are a suspected broken hand for Neville Costigan and prop Michael Wayman's citing for an alleged high shot on Fuifui Moimoi.