Nathan Cleary is again kicking goals. Dylan Edwards is cartwheeling like Glenn Lazarus. And the premiers have just won their seventh game in a row.
Just when it appeared that there would be a changing of the guard in the NRL, Penrith’s quest for five is alive.
Just two months ago, the four-time premiers were sitting in last place. But after dispatching the Wests Tigers 36-2 at CommBank Stadium, the ladder leaders are looking over their shoulder.
“There’s a bit of a story there,” Panthers coach Ivan Cleary said. “I’m very proud of the boys and the way we’ve just hung in there.”
“Essentially, we’re just trusting what we do. Things fall your way a bit when you’re winning and the opposite when you’re not.”
This was vintage Penrith. Their defence held solid, despite the Tigers showing early enterprise with the football. After 80 minutes of football, the Tigers weren’t able to conjure a single line break.
“The thing with Penrith is they don’t beat themselves,” said Tigers coach Benji Marshall.
“We actually wanted to play the way they wanted to play tonight. We did it for 20-odd minutes and then self-inflicted errors and a lack of resilience to defend those errors hurt us.
“I thought we got taught a lesson on game management, field position, kicking game and choking. We actually got strangled to death by them tonight. They were outstanding.
The highlight moment, the one that broke Tigers hearts, came just before half-time. Penrith shifted the ball left from deep in their own territory, Casey McLean broke the line, found Cleary in support, who gave Edwards an unimpeded run to glory.
The phlegmatic fullback made an unexpected contribution to try July, a cartwheel as graceless as the one Lazarus performed after the Storm won the 1999 grand final.
Significantly, the try was converted by Nathan Cleary. The champion halfback has left it to others to add the extras ever since suffering that groin twinge. But with the finals approaching, Cleary has taken back the goalkicking duties, ensuring the Panthers kept going up in increments of six. The benefits of having a week off have immediately become apparent.
The best kick of the night came in general play. Cleary produced a corkscrew grubber, which curved behind three stunned Tigers, and into the grasp of Izak Tago. The defenders weren’t the only ones bamboozled; the bunker hit the green light despite questions over the put-down.
Other stars were also better for having time on the pine. Liam Martin, making a rare appearance off the bench, left a couple of Tigers red-faced when he charged to the line.
It remains to be seen whether the Panthers have left their top-four charge too late. But with upcoming games against the Titans and Knights, the Warriors and Broncos can’t afford any more missteps.
Dylan Edwards does a cartwheel after scoring a try.Credit: Getty Images
The Tigers didn’t stop trying, but couldn’t get as close as they did when the teams last met. Sunia Turuva, one of four former premiership-winning Panthers in Marshall’s line-up, carried the ball 25 times. And yet he was shaded by Edwards as the best fullback on the field.
It was a less happy night for another member of the Tigers spine. Latu Fainu made just one run in 66 minutes of football. Marshall had seen enough and hooked the young halfback. Marshall said he would be starting No.7 next week.
“The thing with Latu is it’s not a short-term thing, it’s a long-term development, understanding the position,” Marshall said.
“He’s done a great job of it. It was through no fault of his own tonight that I made the decision, I just wanted to create something because we were going nowhere with what we’re doing.”
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