There were a lot of changes to the NSW Cup squad today. It a pretty strong indicator that Ivan will most likely rest the origin players.
Thomas Jenkins, Tyrone Peachey, Luke Garner, Zac Hosking and Matt Eisenhuth all scrapped from the NSW Cup squad today. I would expect them to be named in thr NRL side late changes tomorrow.
Yes, my thoughts too. Looks as if IC will stick with his plan for the long game. Happy to back him on that.
Not sure how the bye will affect us.
whilst it helps any little bumps and bruises, it sort of impacts momentum although this one is particularly timely as it would have given IC a chance to get into the heads of the players with a giant reset.
With 6 rounds left after todays game, IC could have set individual and team goals over the coming 6 weeks with a push towards the finals.
I would like him to run the team out as per the advertised list with a view to rest the SOO players if the game is flowing our way which i expect it to do although Dolphins will want desperately to record a win against the Premiers as a mark of their years success.
Today and in the 6 weeks following will be about process and execution.
That is what i am keen to see today if the mindset has shifted from the entire group…the leadup to the finals gives all at the club the opportunity to really focus on the end game and that is retaining the Premiership.
7 weeks is just about the perfect frame to do this and perhaps even begin to try some of the set plays they have been trying at training.
Hope Nathan is rested for a further week, no need to risk our key playmaker as we will want him at 100% for the finals.
Well our SOO players are out, and while the media expect Nathan to play, I’m sure his dad won’t risk him unless 110%.
We still can’t be complacent though, the fins will be desperate for a win, both for ladder position and prestige.
Won’t be the end of the season for us if we loose, but hope we give it to them like we gave it to Melbourne.
Knock On Effect NSW Cup | Full Time
 |
Penrith Panthers | 16 |
Tries CDaeon Amituanai, Matt Stimson, Liam Henry. Goals Kurt Falls (2/3) |
 |
St Goerge Illawarra Dragons | 36 |
Tries Sione Finau (2), Treigh Stewart (2), Benjamin Johnson, Zane Musgrove. Goals Alexander Lobb (6/6) |
Jersey Flegg Cup | Full Time
|
Penrith Panthers | 20 |
Tries Samuel Lane, Liam Ison, Luke Hanson, Bayden Moran. Goals Joseph Nohra (2/4) |
|
St Goerge Illawarra Dragons | 26 |
Tries Cooper Roberts (3), Harry Rudd, Nicholas Quinn. Goals Ashton Ward (3/5) |
Late Mail
Panthers coach Ivan Cleary has updated his squad to face the Dolphins on Sunday afternoon.
The four State of Origin representatives - Brian To’o, Stephen Crichton, Liam Martin and Isaah Yeo - will be rested from the match, while Nathan Cleary remains on the extended bench.
The Panthers will wear the 2023 home kit for Sunday’s clash.
Cleary is being rested. Probably a good thing.
Cogger is having a shocker and highlights our concerns for nest year for a second string kicker
But that is next year…Cogger is seriously not a first grader but he has a mate in Jenkins
Lenui must be still in SOO mode…we need more from him.
Just on Lenui, isn’t a shoulder charge to the head a sin bin or send off???
We have let them back in this,Cleary needs to settle our mob and get back to basics.
It wasn’t pretty, but we got the points.
Leota’s try would have to be in the running for the most comical of the year.
Panther Pride Man of the Match voting is now open i agree to a point about Leotas try
i would rather say he got the try through effort and notice he didn’t have many in support?
thankfully IC brought Leota and JFH back on to stem the push from them
And who thought and or knew Edwards could even kick???
It was a win and despite them heading us for a time we were always in control.
All of this being said i am a little worried about Luai…this was a game for him to control yet he was just ok.
Call it a bye let down
Nice to get the win and hope all the key boys are ok.
I am pretty well informed about environmental & conservation matters, but during the first half of today’s game I was surprised to see that the classification of dolphins as a protected species had been extended to the NRL.
We certainly lost the rub of the green in that game, not one 50/50 went towards us (well on field anyway, the bunker seemed to most calls correct).
So glad Edwards had the guts to make a captains call with the goal kicking. 2/2 from the sideline makes him 2nd only to Cleary, and a question on where he stands next to Critta.
Thankfully Edwards, Tago and Leota straightened us up. I thought Jenkins had his best game in first grade, and shows the more he plays in firsts the better he will be.
When players are dropped due to form, one of two things happen - they work harder and rise to the top, or they seem to regress and seem not interested. For two older contrasts, compare the career trajectory at Penrith of Edwards and Moylen after they have been dropped.
Unfortunately after being dropped by NSW, Jerome seems to not following Edwards example. He simply looked disinterested most of the time. Hopefully he snaps out of it once Cleary comes back.
It was a game that was ours to loose. Thankfully we grabbed the win. We hold first spot on the ladder, and not only have a good shot at top 4, should be able to make a play for a home final and the minor premiership again.
Add to that that the likes of Hosking, Jenkins, Eisenhuth can be depended upon if required and we seem in real good stead.
Dylan spent a fair bit of time doing goalkicking practice at the open training session on Tuesday. Another case of making preparations I guess 
thanks Mr W
on his ( Edwards) kicking efforts Cogger shouldn’t be allowed to take a kick again.
That was a very good win in a game that was there to be lost.
Looking at the remaining rounds I think we now have one hand on the minor premiership trophy (Sportsbet seem to agree at $1.40).
Would be very interesting if we had it tied up before the last round where we play the Cowboys and rested our first team as we did last year. In this scenario, if Cowboys won it would be the 3-peat for them against us.
Of course in all three games we were understrength; now, if we were to meet in the finals the Cowboys wouldn’t be seeing many familiar faces.
I think this will come down to how the Broncos and Storm are tracking as I feel they are the only teams that could snatch the Minor Premiership at this stage.
Storm tends to start to put in their best performances at the end of the year timing perfectly with the finals, and the Broncos tend to have their infamous late season fade.
I guess it come down to if they follow the trend (or buck it in the Broncos case - no puns intended).
That all being said, we are in the drivers seat to deliver our third Minor Premiership in 4 years.
I wouldn’t rule out the Warriors challenging for the minor premiership. They have been playing some good footy, and have a fairly good run in.
Regardless, I wouldn’t be surprised if IC started giving players a week off to freshen up. Maybe 2-3 each week.
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