James Maloney stars as Penrith upset the Roosters 30-18 in NRL trial match

IT was only a brief glimpse, but Penrith’s new looks halves combination looks to be a good one after James Maloney and Nathan Cleary starred in the Panthers 30-18 win over the Roosters.

IT was only a brief cameo, but Penrith’s new halves combination showed enough to suggest they can steer the mountain men to success in 2018.

Proven winner James Maloney combined beautifully with Nathan Cleary in his maiden 22-minute stint for the club, as the Panthers recorded a 30-18 victory over an under-strength Roosters side on Saturday night.

Maloney looked composed and classy in attack and could be the missing ingredient for the Panthers to finally fulfil their title plan.

The two-time premiership winning five-eighth delivered a perfect cut-out pass for winger Maika Sivo to score in the first half, while he defended strongly.

Cleary was equally impressive for Penrith, setting up a try and kicking two goals in his 40 minutes on the field.

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Maloney was happy with his maiden appearance in a Panthers jersey, while he praised his emerging teammates for stepping up.

“I thought it was positive and actually more impressive than I thought it was going to be,” Maloney said.

“But I was really impressed with some of the young kids coming through. They’ve got plenty of footy in them.”

Egan crossed for a try and set up another.

Maloney said his combination with Cleary will “take time”, but he is confident it’s on the right track.

He hopes to build the connection further by playing 80 minutes against the Bulldogs at Belmore next Saturday night.

“The basics are there and we’ll get a better hit out next week of how we want do everything,” he said.

“It would be nice to get a good stint in there before we go into round one.

“But there is so much improvement in this side, which is exciting.”

The Panthers secured an upset win.

Penrith coach Anthony Griffin praised Maloney’s first match for the club, while he confirmed the prized recruit would receive maximum minutes against Canterbury next weekend.

“It’s our last trial, so we’ll trim the numbers right down,” Griffin said.

“He (Maloney) has been really good and I’ve been really impressed with him.

“We gave him the option to wait until next week, but he wanted to get out there with the boys and make a start.

“His attitude has been great around the club.”

The Roosters were without James Tedesco and Cooper Cronk.

The Panthers were far from perfect, but they had plenty of strong performers.

Rising hooker Wayde Egan showcased his potential with a try.

The Lithgow-born and bred No.9 also set up a four-pointer to ensure Penrith will have depth around the ruck this season.

Gold Coast-bound centre Tyrone Peachey also impressed with a first half try, although his defence was questionable at stages.

Sivo snared a double in a strong display, but he is unlikely to crack the Panthers’ backline for round one.

The Roosters may have been missing a cast of their stars, including big-name buys James Tedesco and Cooper Cronk, but they performed admirably.

Centre Joseph Manu scored a try and looked imposing with the ball in hand, while former Broncos, Raiders and Eels back Reece Robinson crossed and kicked a goal in his return to the NRL after two years in rugby union.

Roosters coach Trent Robinson was happy with his team’s attack, but he wasn’t as pleased with their defence.

“I thought the attack wasn’t too bad, but defensively we were quite poor,” Robinson said.

“We were quite slow to move for the most part, so it was a bit disappointing the way we defended the ruck.”

Asked if the Roosters will field a full-strength team against Manly on the Central Coast next Saturday, Robinson replied: “We’ll see”.

In positive news for the Tricolours, he confirmed five-eighth Luke Keary was back training after breaking his jaw and could play in the opening round against the Wests Tigers.