While retiring club great Ben Creagh was forced to watch on from the sideline, Benji Marshall, Mitch Rein and Mike Cooper all played their final match in the red v in the face-saving win over the wooden-spooners. 

In a cruel twist of fate it proved a sad farewell for Dragons’ 2010 premiership alum Jeremy Smith, who conceded a ruck penalty in the final minute with the scores locked at 26-all, opening the door for Gareth Widdop to kick the match-winner.

After leading 22-10 at the break, the Dragons conceded three second half ties to one before Widdop saved them from the ignominy of dropping their final game to the luckless Knights who were chasing just their second win of the season.

It drew the curtain on an otherwise forgettable year for the Dragons, with the win just their second from their final nine games.

In a season where the knives have been out for chief executive Peter Doust and coach Paul McGregor the win will provide a modicum of breathing space heading into the club’s fourth early finish in five seasons.

McGregor was pleased to send some departing champions out on a winning note, but conceded the review that begins begin next week will be sobering.

"It was a disappointing year if you look at our 2015 season where we made the finals for the first time in four years," McGregor said.

“We were looking to build on that and we didn’t manage to do that this year which is hard [to accept].

“I’m going to do a complete review starting next week so I’ll get to the bottom of it. Outside influences and outside pressures certainly had a fair influence.

"The uncontrollables, we certainly let them control a few things too much. We’ve certainly got to deal with that better adversity-wise and football-wise, in the fundamentals of the game, we just weren't good at and we need to improve. In all facets of it."

The NRL’s trial of the captain’s challenge referral system also proved a fizzer with both skippers keeping their challenges in the holster and none of the 10 tries scored subject to any review.

The visitors jumped out of the blocks with Nathan Ross crossing after just five minutes, carrying three defenders across for the opening four-pointer and a 4-0 lead. 

Jacob Saifiti scored four minutes later after a Mitch Barnett kick took a deflection with the giant prop on-hand to scoop up the scraps and score the second try of the match next to the posts. Hodkinson converted for a 10-0 lead.

The Dragons hit back when some slick hands from Josh Dugan put Jason Nightingale away down the western touch-line to open their account with Widdop’s sideline conversion cutting the margin back to four.

Joel Thompson did it all himself in the 23^rd minute when he charged onto Widdop short ball and left Knights fullback Jake Mamo clutching at thin air on a 50-metre run to the line, squaring things up at 10 apiece.

Widdop forced back to back line dropouts from the Knights and the pressure told when Thompson crossed for his second to take the Dragons first lead of the match.

Jake Marketo finished off a 70-metre team effort from the next set to give his side a 22-10 nine minutes before halftime. 

The Knights struck first after the resumption with Dane Gagai brushing off two defenders to score in the corner and get his side back in the clash at 22-14 and when Pete Mata’utia ran past three Dragons defenders to plant a Hodkinson kick the game was back on at 22-20.

Young-gun Luciano Leilua showed his skill-set with a cut-out pass that put Nightingale over in the corner to give the Dragons a six-point buffer with 22 minutes to play.

A barnstorming individual effort from Barnett gave the Knights a sniff with seven minutes remaining with Hodkinson’s sideline conversion locking things up at 26-all. 

Jarrod Mullen had his 78^th minute field-goal attempt charged down before the controversial penalty against Smith saw Widdop step up to ice the match with nine seconds to spare.