Liam Martin scores for Penrith. Photo: NRL Photos.
The Roosters made a statement. The Warriors did too.
Then Penrith declared, hold my beer.
The Panthers demolished Canberra 42-18 in Mudgee tonight, confirming their status as Premiership favourites ahead of a blockbuster fortnight for Ivan Cleary’s side.
There was no miracle for the Raiders tonight, completely outplayed by Penrith despite scoring the first try.
Liam Martin grabbed his first career double in the opening half while Thomas Jenkins added two more tries to his ever-growing tally and Jaxen Edgar scored his first NRL try.
Jaxen Edgar scored his first NRL try. Photo: NRL Photos.
It took Penrith until the 56th minute to get on the board in the second half, with Liam Henry crashing over to extinguish any hope of a Raiders comeback.
The Raiders rallied with two late tries, before Isaiah Papali’i grabbed the last four-pointer of the game in the dying minutes.
Penrith will now take on the Warriors and Roosters in consecutive weeks in what will be a case of September footy come early.
Nathan Cleary was strong with the boot. Photo: NRL Photos.
Panthers coach Ivan Cleary was happy with the way his side responded to conceding the first try.
“It did feel good. It wasn’t a great start but we corrected it really quickly which was a good sign,” he said.
“We started the game defensively waiting for it to happen. We needed to be a bit more proactive.”
Canberra coach Ricky Stuart said his side’s performance “wasn’t good enough”, while captain Joe Tapine said they didn’t execute their game plan.
Penrith’s Brian To’o celebrated his 150th game with a win, but is still chasing his elusive 100th NRL try.
Brian To’o celebrates his 150th NRL game with family in Mudgee. Photo: NRL Photos.
Troy Dodds is the Weekender’s Managing Editor and Breaking News Reporter. He has more than 20 years experience as a journalist, working with some of Australia’s leading media organisations. In 2023, he was named Editor of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards.