Penrith Panthers

[vc_row full_height="yes" equal_height="yes" css=".vc_custom_1588808932712{background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: contain !important;}"][vc_column css=".vc_custom_1588575023407{padding-top: -10px !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}" el_class="cb-main-content"][vc_text_separator title="Match Previews" i_icon_fontawesome="fas fa-search" i_color="black" i_size="lg" title_align="separator_align_left" color="custom" border_width="5" add_icon="true" accent_color="#852023" el_class="cb-sub-head"][vc_column_text]As well as providing his best value bets every week, our NRL guru Steve Green also previews every NRL game for members. Here's Steve's thoughts for every Panthers game. To get Steve’s previews plus his best bets each week, join NRL Tips now!

NRL Round 15: Panthers v Roosters

The Panthers have now lost two in a row and for a team that is not used to losing at all, I am expecting an angry Panthers outfit on Friday night. Playing in front of their home crowd and with a line up that is about as strong as they can put together, I really like their chances of blowing the Roosters off the park here. After a few poor showings at 7, Tyrone May has been dropped out of the 17 and young Tago has rightfully been given another shot in the top grade. Tago has been one of the real standouts in the NSW Cup and he has looked great since joining the top grade a fortnight ago. With so many Panthers players fresh off their triumphant State of Origin debuts, I am expecting this confident footy team to bounce back with a clinical attacking display.

  As for the Roosters, while their line up still looks pretty strong, we have seen in recent weeks just how much of a toll their injury-ravaged season is taking on their performances. To allow an out of form Titans outfit to pile on so many consecutive tries shows that this Roosters squad is a far cry from the team that has dominated the NRL over the past 5-6 years. While the Roosters welcome back some quality in terms of Tedesco and Taukeiaho, there has been a lot of disruption to the Roosters spine. Without Collins and Radley, they are also missing some grunt in the middle, so while I think they will be competitive early, I think the Panthers, at home, should run away with this one. Predicted score Panthers 30 - Roosters 12

NRL Round 14: Sharks v Panthers

It is looking as if Cleary, To’o and Yep all won't back up, while I also think Capewell is unlikely to play. This will leave a pretty big hole in the Panthers line up and as we saw last weekend, the whole thing goes a little haywire without their key men. Api and Martin will most definitely play, while Luai is also tipped to play. These guys will provide a big boost and this is why the Panthers are still about 6 point favourites for this one. However, the home team, fresh off the back of a huge win against the Titans, will feel full of confidence. Moylan and Johnson were great in the halves, while Ramien and Mulitalo provided some strike out wide. Talakai, Fifita and Williams provide some fire power on the bench, while Coach Hannay has some great options in his Reserves to draw on if he decides to make a late switch. While the Sharks did look good against the Titans, they are notoriously inconsistent, and I am not willing to back them against a Panthers team that will be looking to bounce back from their first regular season loss in a very long time. I thought the Tigers played very well last weekend and made the understrength Panthers look bad. With Api and Luai back to help Burton out, I think we will see a much better Panthers performance this weekend and the various weaknesses in this Sharks team will be exposed. But at home and with one of their strong looking line ups, I am not willing to bet against the Sharks here. Predicted score Panthers 26 - Sharks 18

NRL Round 13: West v Panthers

Although the Panthers continue to play stellar footy, this is the biggest challenge they have faced all season. While the Panthers have missed Koroisau and Edwards for an extended period this year, overall the nucleus of their squad has remained better intact that any other team in the competition. In total, ten Panthers players have played every game so far this year. This weekend, due to suspension and Origin duties, they will be missing Apisai Koroisau, Brian To’o, Isaah Yeo, Jarome Luai, Liam Martin, Moses Leota and Nathan Cleary. Six of these guys are in the Panthers top’ ten players based on my player ratings. And none are more important that captain Cleary. Cleary’s kicking game and overall control has seen him climb to be the premier player in the competition. His goal kicking is amazing and his combination with Luai is why the latter has been picked for NSW. While Burton and May are very good replacements, May in particular has not played much in the halves in recent times, and so I am not sure we will see the clinical Panthers we have become accustomed to. In addition, the absence of Martin, Leota, Yeo and Koroisau take away the core of their dominant forward pack. While Kikau and Fisher-Harris remain, these four guys are renowned for doing the tough stuff that is often missed by the pundits. Yeo is also great at playing as a extra ball player, so his absence further compounds the loss of the Panthers halves. The big question then becomes how well the NSW Cup players can step up. Before last weekend many people would argue these guys are all ready to dominate the NRL, but lets not forget that the Panthers NSW Cup team suffered their first loss of the year last weekend, to a patchwork Mounties team. The week earlier they snuck home against Souths due to a 79th penalty goal…so I still think these young guys will find the going tough stepping up to the NRL in a team missing a ton of talent. As for the opponents, Wests delivered for us last weekend, and I am confident they can do again this week. Although they will miss Joe O to Origin duties, their forward depth is impressive and I think guys like Amone, Seyfarth, Blore and Utoikamanu will relish the opportunity to play more minutes. Wests spine looks very settled and out wide, I really like the speed Wests possess in the form of Roberts and Nofoaluma. Playing at Leichardt, off the back of winning three of their last five, I really like the odds on offer for Wests here. Predicted score Wests 24 – Panthers 22

NRL Round 12: Panthers v Bulldogs

What can you say about this game? As big of a head start as I have ever seen. And while this is not the weakest Doggies squad they have put on the park, at home the Panthers will fancy their chances of getting to 50… such is the speed of the game in 2021. With the Doggies welcoming back Jack Hetherington, as well as having other guys recently in trouble for high shots (Napa and Seumanufagai), the chances of the Doggies being without a player or two during the 80 minutes is high. On my ratings, the Doggies are a decent chance of keeping this tight early and that would give them a great chance of covering the line. However as we saw last night with the Broncos... the Panthers and the Storm are so good at taking advantage of tiring defences, that I am too worried about a second half points explosion to back the plus here….while I do not think this Doggies team will roll over as easy as many are predicting, so not willing to take on such a big line. If I had to have a bet on this one, I would be taking the big plus on offer, but the way the game is being officiated this year has enabled the Panthers to play at a pace that cannot be matched by most of their rivals, so as foreshadowed earlier in the week, I am going to be very tight with my NRL betting this weekend. Predicted Score Panthers 38 - Bulldogs 6

NRL Round 9: Panthers v Sharks

The Panthers continue on their winning ways and have no injury concerns. They are at home and there is not much more than can be said about this juggernaut. Manly threatened at stages and came closest to matching the Panthers in areas such as metres gained, but the Panthers' goal line scramble proved too much to overcome. As for the Sharks, I had my doubts about the coaching abilities of interim coach Josh Hannay, and these have been confirmed over the past fortnight. The Sharks are making some poor selections out wide (with Dugan passed over in favour of Chambers) and the absence of some powerful forwards (Siosifa Talakai and Braden Hamlin-Uele) hurts their go-forward. With S Katoa and Multalo still out, the Sharks continue with makeshift wingers, and while I really like Connor Tracey, I think he needs to be closer to the action. The Sharks second-half capitulation against the Storm was hard to watch. If Munster could kick goals, then that could have reached 50. This is a week after the Sharks were beaten by the Bulldogs! While the Sharks are still a danger team on their day, I am not willing to take them at the plus here due to my concerns about how much the players are buying into their coach’s game plan. Shaun Johnson’s timing was a little off last weekend, and so until I see him and Moylan on the field and combining well in attack, and their outside backs lining up, I doubt I will be backing the Sharks. I am also not willing to take on such a big line for the Panthers, because I think Manly showed that while they are hard to beat, this Panthers team certainly are not invincible. Bookies have it about right.

Predicted Score   Panthers 30 - Sharks 10