Penrith have snared a share of the competition lead – for a few days at least – after an impressive 16-2 win over the Wests Tigers in a stop-start affair at Panthers Stadium tonight.
The match featured 22 penalties and 25 errors, with the stoppages forcing the game to stay in low gear.
But Penrith did enough to win the match and never really looked like losing after taking a 12-2 lead into the break.
Penrith dominated possession in a tryless second half and had three tries denied by the video referee.
Dallin Watene-Zelezniak was best for the Panthers while Nathan Cleary made a successful return from a knee injury.
“The Wests Tigers are a tremendous defensive team. They scramble like hell… they play for each other and defend for each other,” Penrith coach Anthony Griffin said post-match.
“We’ve got a lot of improvement… but I thought we controlled the game really well and never gave them a sniff.”
Penrith play the competition leading Dragons next weekend.
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.