The Penrith Panthers take on the North Queensland Cowboys at Sportingbet Stadium in round 23 action and it is certainly a match that deserves much more than its lowly, cold placement on a Monday night at the foot of the Mountains.
This game has emerged as a battle for a top four position, with the Panthers winning two tough games on the road in the past fortnight and the Cowboys roaring into premiership contention with four straight victories, including a thumping of the inept Wests Tigers last Saturday night in Townsville.
If the Cowboys are to finish inside the top four, victory over Penrith on Monday is critical – a loss would see the Panthers open up what you would think would be an unassailable six point gap on them.
But the Panthers have just as much to play for, especially in front of their home fans, and after defeating the Bulldogs and Dragons in successive weeks on the road (following a ‘home’ game in Bathurst), the side would be pleased to return to Sportingbet Stadium for the first time since their thrilling one-point win over Brisbane more than a month ago.
The Panthers are the enigma of this competition.
Written off by the so-called experts even when they had almost their full side on the paddock, the Panthers are continuing to find a way to win even with an injury crisis that would cripple most clubs.
The key to success last weekend against St George-Illawarra was players stepping up to fill-in for their injured colleagues.
Peter Wallace is gone for the season, so we saw Jamie Soward take control of the game against his former club, producing a much different kicking game than usual given the windy conditions, but getting the desired result on most occasions.
Elijah Taylor is also gone, so we saw Adam Docker play a starring role in defence, producing 30 tackles and really taking it to the Dragons’ forwards. Docker’s nine missed tackles were a concern, but the bloke was involved in everything and even managed to cross for a try during the 16-4 win.
The list goes on, but you get the point.
Some said Penrith would unravel at the business end of the season because they didn’t have any star players to ignite a match when it was there for the taking. But the opposite has in fact happened and the Panthers have thrived on a structure that sees everyone knowing their place and their job, and stepping up when they need to.
It is evident in how easily Penrith covers injuries during matches – on show again last weekend when David Simmons went down with concussion just before half-time.
Whilst the Panthers’ victories over the Bulldogs and Dragons have been impressive, there is no doubt that Monday night presents one of the biggest challenges of the season for Ivan Cleary’s side.
The Cowboys are full of confidence given their recent form, and seem to have fixed their problems travelling away from Townsville.
While Johnathan Thurston is the obvious danger man, the Cowboys are getting plenty out of players like Michael Morgan and Tautau Moga in the backs – in fact between them, Morgan and Moga clocked up seven line breaks last weekend.
The Cowboys are an exciting football side that thrives on confidence. When something goes their way, they have an innate ability to make something of it and set the tone for the rest of the game.
At the time of going to print, Cowboys forward Tariq Sims was facing the judiciary in an attempt to beat a dangerous contact charge to play on Monday.
Penrith are essentially unchanged, with just a little bit of doubt over David Simmons.
This could be one of the closest matches of the round – in fact, I’m tipping we will find ourselves in a field goal shootout in the final minutes.
Tip: Panthers by 1
