Liberal hopes that Tony Abbott might avoid further mistakes have been shaken again by his declaration that potential leadership alternatives Julie Bishop and Malcolm Turnbull have done well because they have a good "captain" at the helm.
"It takes a good captain to help all the players of a team excel," he said, while visiting southern Victoria.
The statement has raised eyebrows among his colleagues who have made clear they are prepared to give the embattled Prime Minister clear air recover his balance, but say there can be no more errors of judgment such as the recent "knightmare" fiasco.
A senior cabinet source said Mr Abbott will face a strong reaction from senior ministers at a "major" cabinet meeting scheduled for Tuesday with ministers lining up to do a bit of plain speaking about government failings.
The meeting comes just days after the Queensland state election result which may add to the pressure on Mr Abbott due to the unpopularity of his government and its budget and the implication that it cost LNP votes north of the Tweed River.
The claim of prime ministerial credit for the more popular performance of certain ministers coincided with a warning from Treasurer Joe Hockey to keep quiet.
"Everyone's entitled to a view but I would just say to people 'We do not want to become a carbon copy of a bad Labor government, the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd government'," he said.
After a horror week at the end of a horror first month of 2015, dejected Liberals say they desperately want the Prime Minister to succeed even as some have begun discussing a "plan B" involving a shift to Mr Turnbull, Ms Bishop or perhaps both in the form of a leadership ticket.
Asked if he would be prepared to stand aside for more popular ministers in the interests of the party, Mr Abbott said "I'm really thrilled I've got strong colleagues".
"One of the reasons why so many members of the team are able to perform so well is because they have got a very good captain," he said.
"It takes a good captain to help all the players of a team to excel."
Later sources close to the Prime Minister explained that the comments reflected Mr Abbott's direct and active involvement in the portfolio decisions of his ministers – particularly regarding international affairs and matters affecting national security.
They said Mr Abbott always chairs cabinet's National Security Committee at which such matters as Australia's global and domestic response to the terrorist threat are determined.
Opinion polls have consistently shown that Mr Turnbull, the Liberal leader replaced by Mr Abbott in a knife-edge party-room contest in 2009, is the preferred choice of voters to lead the Liberal Party.
Polls have also shown that Foreign Affairs Minister Ms Bishop, who has attracted widespread praise for her handling of the portfolio, and in particular her deft management of the UN Security Council response the MH17 atrocity, is preferred over Mr Abbott.
Liberals have been rocked by an avalanche of negative commentary in recent days, most of it friendly fire from conservative supporters, in response to Mr Abbott's decision to knight the Queen's husband, Prince Philip.
While Mr Abbott has conceded it was a mistake to grant the knighthood without consultation, he has promised to be more inclusive in the future.
However a growing number of MPs appear to be running out of patience with the government's accident-prone performance and the Prime Minister's apparent inability to lift his personal ratings with voters.
