More concerning than Penrith’s one win, three loss record to start the season is just how far off the pace Ivan Cleary’s side seems to be.
After a strong win in Las Vegas, the Panthers have collapsed in defence and their energy and enthusiasm has fallen off a cliff.
The good news? There’s plenty of time to fix it.
And some of those fixes will come in the shape of returning players, like Nathan Cleary who is back in the number seven jumper for this Friday night’s clash with the Cowboys.
Cleary is such a dominant player and sees the game so differently to others that when someone has to fill in for him, everything can get clunky really quickly – as we saw when Trent Toelau was tasked with guiding the side around last week against Souths.
It was different when Jarome Luai took control. He understood Cleary’s game.
I’m not one to question Ivan Cleary’s team selections (after all, he’s got it so right over the last five years), but I did find it curious that he went with Toelau over the more experienced Brad Schneider, who was sitting on the bench while the carnage unfolded at Accor Stadium last Thursday, perhaps wondering what he did wrong given he was brought to the club last year as a back-up half to be utilised when one of the key men were unavailable.
So, Nathan Cleary is back – and it won’t be long before Penrith is full strength again. But just being full strength alone may not be enough to get everything ticking along again. The Panthers need to find another level, a new way to defy expectations, new tools with which to climb the mountain.
Because while nobody would question Penrith’s hunger, there are other teams in this competition on the mountain with them – the likes of Manly, Brisbane and the Bulldogs, who haven’t eaten as regularly as Penrith in recent times. Their desire to get to the top may just be a little stronger.
The last month has been pretty tough for Penrith fans but it will turn at some point, and we can hope it’s against the Cowboys this Friday.
North Queensland had a slow start to the season but finally got on the board against Canberra in a much improved showing in Townsville last Saturday.
The thing about the Cowboys is that while they don’t seem to have 80-minute performances in them, they can sting you quickly. They scored three tries in eight minutes in the first half last Saturday to completely change the nature of the game and go from behind to a decent lead in the blink of an eye.
And Penrith’s recent defensive leaks put them at risk of conceding points quickly, so they’ll have to work hard to arrest any momentum the Cowboys get, or it could spell danger.
The eight day turnaround from the performance against South Sydney would have given Ivan Cleary the opportunity for a mini-reset.
He would have addressed the issues of the last three weeks and will have a game plan to get things back on track.
One thing that has put Penrith in such good stead during their Premiership run is their ability to control the game, to dictate the terms and starve their opposition of opportunity.
That simply hasn’t been there enough in the first month of the competition – indeed there was even signs of it in Las Vegas against the Sharks.
Find that spark again, and the Panthers will go a long way to returning to the winner’s circle.
Tip: Panthers by 6.
Penrith and North Queensland play on Friday, April 4 at CommBank Stadium at 6pm. The game is live on Kayo, Fox Sports and SEN.
Troy Dodds
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.