We’re into the sixth week of the NRL competition and Penrith still hasn’t won a match in Australia. Their fifth consecutive defeat has left them languishing near the bottom of the ladder, leaving their title defence in tatters.
How did it get to this? Here are five reasons why Penrith’s reign could be coming to an end.
Cleary can’t do it all on his own
Nathan Cleary has always been a step ahead of the opposition. At the moment, his teammates can’t keep up with him either.
On several occasions this season, Cleary has created a chance, only for a Panther to miss his assignment. It happened again against the Dolphins, when the halfback floated a perfectly timed pass, only for the Steeden to hit the turf because an outside back couldn’t get there in time.
Even when Penrith had a glut of quality possession in the opening half, the premiers scored only one try, courtesy of a Cleary grubber.
Nathan Cleary couldn’t save the Panthers this time.Credit: NRL Photos
Cleary is the best player of his generation, but the Panthers can’t expect him to dig them out of this hole on his own.
Injuries and suspensions take a toll
Penrith’s storied roster depth has been tested like never before. We’ll get to the salary cap squeeze shortly, but this season has already been unkind from an injury/suspension perspective. Nathan Cleary, Dylan Edwards, Brian To’o, Mitch Kenny and Jack Cole are among those to have spent time on the sidelines during the Panthers’ winless streak.
The guys stepping in - Blaize Talagi, Casey McLean, Tom Jenkins and Luron Patea - are going to need time to find their feet in first grade.
Salary cap squeeze
You can’t keep taking champions out of a champion team and expect the results to stay the same. After last year’s triumph, the Panthers lost Jarome Luai, James Fisher-Harris, Sunia Turuva and Isaiah Iongi. Before that, Stephen Crichton, Matt Burton, Spencer Leniu, Viliame Kikau, J’maine Hopgood, Apisai Koroisau and Zac Hosking were squeezed out.
The Panthers have the biggest and best junior nursery in the country, but you can’t come up with like-for-like replacements of that quality. Luai, who helped take pressure off Cleary, may well be the departing star they miss most.
What goes up must come down
Penrith players have been up for so long that it’s a surprise this slump hasn’t come earlier. The side has been in five grand finals in a row and their key men have been involved in State of Origin and Test duty during that period as well.
What we’re seeing is the fatigue factor kicking in. Throw in the fact that every team lifts against the four-peat premiers, and it feels like they have finally hit the wall.
Winning is contagious. So is losing
The Panthers are now experiencing a streak they are unaccustomed to. A slew of players have never experienced a losing run quite like this, and you can see that confidence levels are at an all-time low.
The most concerning sign is the defence or lack thereof. Four of the five Dolphins tries at Suncorp Stadium were the long-range variety. Those lapses, with the inability to capitalise on opportunities, meant they were never really in the game.
Each loss will bring more pressure and scrutiny, a new phenomenon for most of the squad. There is also the weight of history; no team in the 117-year history of the competition has gone on to win the premiership after winning just one of their first six matches.
This Panthers team has created history over the past four seasons. It will take something very special for them to add to it.
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