Speaking after the Roar's final training session of the week, McKay seemed to be taking the captaincy in his stride, joking about his 'tactics' for the critical clash with the Jets.

"First and foremost I get to do the toss at the start of the game. I won last week, but we lost the game -so maybe I'll lose the toss this week and we'll win," he joked.

"I've been here for a long time and I've captained the team before when players have been suspended or injured. It doesn't change what I do, I'll lead by example and give the best I've got - I always do every week anyway.

"(Pulling the team together) is partly my role, but more so an issue for the whole team collectively. It's a team game. We've got 11 guys out there who want to do well, and they need to stand up.

"I won't be barking instructions, but giving the helpful pointers to get them through the game and trying to get the three points."

It's been a tough few weeks for the Roar who have been plagued by injuries and inconsistent form, but both McKay and coach Ange Postecoglou were hopeful of capitalising on the Jets' busy schedule.

Newcastle had a midweek game, which it lost 2-0 to Gold Coast, and Saturday's match against the Roar will be its third in six days.

McKay added: "Hopefully Newcastle will be tired. But we had the three games in a week and we got a result down in Central Coast our third game - so they should be tired, but they'll still put up a good performance and they're a good side.

"A few of the boys were struggling (when we had three games in a week), but we got the win so that's what counts.

"They will be tired, especially up here in the heat. It was another hot game for them on Wednesday night against the Gold Coast, so hopefully it's stinking hot at Suncorp by Saturday night."

Postecoglou echoed McKay's views, sounding hopeful but unsure of whether the busy schedule would affect the Jets.

"Some clubs have coped with it not too bad, others have struggled. We probably coped better than most," he said.

"It is a tough week, there's no doubt about it. I assume they stayed up here after the Gold Coast game, so at least the travel factor is not a massive issue for them. And they've probably rested a couple of guys on Wednesday night that I think will play tomorrow night.

"It is a tough turn around for them, three games in six days. We've got to try to take advantage of that. Try to run them off their feet. If there is any fatigue in their camp, take advantage of it."

With five games left in the season and with their side still fighting for a spot in the top six, Postecoglou and McKay realise they'll need to play well to beat the Jets and progress in their quest for a finals berth.

"We're really looking forward to the game. It's a must win obviously. Newcastle have had a purple patch, (winning) five from seven. It's a good yard stick to see how we're going," McKay said.

The message from Postecoglou was succinct but similar, the Roar coach saying: "We've got five games to go. We want to work hard to get into those finals."