Maitland were due to play Lake Macquarie this week but with Lake's expulsion from the premier division and the bye the following week, the Blacks will have three weeks to prepare for their round 12 game against Wanderers.

The Blacks will take the positive from Saturday that even with a litany of injuries they can match it with the best in the competition.

They will also learn that giving Merewether a penalty anywhere inside your own half when Sam Bright is on kicking duties will cost you.

Bright's two conversions and five penalty goals proved the difference as both teams ran in two tries, with Maitland's Riley Woods scoring a double, in a tough, evenly matched contest in general play.

"The score line probably didn't reflect how close it was," Blacks coach Luke Cunningham said.

"We had a great first half and we were making some good metres with our carries and creating some opportunities.

"Some ill-discipline probably cost us five penalties which was the difference in the end.

"They've got a pretty astute goal kicker so you have to be careful and he made us pay."

Cunningham said the timing of the extra bye may well come in handy as the Blacks battled through on Saturday with a growing injury list and plenty of niggles.

"The effort of the guys was unreal. Considering the horrific week we had come off injury wise our guys really stood up," he said.

"The guys that come in from second grade all played really well. There was certainly no fault in the players commitment and effort it was just a couple of little areas let us down.

"Plenty of positives to come out of it and plenty to work with.

"Our scrum was really strong and held its own. We had a bit of an off day with our lineout we lost too much of our own throw, but up until this week it has been one of the stronger aspects of our game.

"Riley Woods on the wing had a really good game. He made a couple of really good runs and made a couple of important tackles to save some tries.

"He is playing with a lot of confidence and really backing himself with his speed in attack which is paying off. He got a couple of tries as a result of that.

"Nick Davidson had a strong game and Justis Gerrard, who had his second game in the front row, has really stepped it up in the last fortnight and brought some aggression back to his game. He has had a couple of really strong games over the past fortnight."

The Blacks have lost Chris Logan and Tom Vincent for the season, Harry Chapman is still another three or four weeks away with a torn pec and five-eighth Harei Meihana has had scans on his shoulder and didn't play on Saturday either.

"We had a couple of guys who were away for family and personal commitments over the weekend. Hopefully we can get everyone back on deck, obviously barring those two guys who have gone for the year," Cunningham said.

"Both those guys are really big losses for the rest of the year but thankfully we have built some depth at the club and I'm confident the guys who come up and fill their spots are not going to let us down.

"To begin with I didn't like the idea of two byes in a row, but with our current injury status not just in first grade, but in reserve grade and third grade as well, the next three weeks might be a blessing to get guys back on deck and to allow those guys who are still playing with niggles to get them sorted."