DazzlingDozen 12 Panthers selected for representative honours p.3

Luke PriddisErin MolanMasked Panther

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PENRITH PANTHERS1 Dallin Watene-Zelezniak2 Eddie Aiono3 Tom Eisenhuth4 Nathan Smith (c)5 Regan Haika6 Will Smith7 Daniel Foster8 Sam Anderson9 Ryan Simpkins10 Leilani Latu11 Matt Robinson12 Anthony Cherrington13 Vaipuna Tia Kilifi 14 Matt Eisenhuth15 Liam Ayoub16 Mitch Clark17 Andy Saunders

NZ WARRIORS1 Kevin Locke2 Braxton Stanley3 Dane Nielsen4 Raymond Faitala-Mariner5 Jarrod Tua6 Steve Waetford (c)7 Tuimoala Lolohea8 Nathaniel Peteru9 Sam Cook10 Charlie Gubb11 John Palavi12 Agnatius Paasi13 Sione Lousi14 Upu Poching15 Albert Vete16 Solomone Kata17 David Bhana

I t will be an uphill battle for the Penrith Panthers NSW Cup side this Saturday afternoon as they will look to overcome the loss of seven key

players to representative duty.Isaac John (New Zealand), Waqa Blake,

Eto Nabuli, Reagan Campbell Gillard, Kevin Naiqama (Fiji), Isaah Yeo (NSW U20s) and Kierran Moseley (QLD U20s) will all be missing from Panthers coach Garth Brennan’s line-up when they face a fired up New Zealand Warriors outfit this Satur-day afternoon at Sportingbet Stadium.

PREVIEW

Focus is on lower gradesNathan Smith shifts to the centres in the NSW Cup this weekend

The Warriors, fresh from a crushing 48-12 win over Newtown last week, will also be somewhat affected through representa-tive commitments but are hit nowhere near as hard as the home side.

Coach Brennan said with most of his younger brigade missing, he will look to his more experienced campaigners to try and get the job done.

“I will be relying on experience this weekend to get me through. I think the replacements we have in the side are more than capable of doing the job,” he told Extra Time.

With Brennan’s attacking weapons like Nabuli and Naiqama missing, he’ll more than likely go for a more defensive game plan to stop the big Warriors forwards.

“We’ll probably be more defence orien-tated than what we have been because most of my backline has been stolen by the Fiji Test team,” Brennan said.

“Due to the changes, I’ve chosen Nathan Smith and Tom Eisenhuth, who usually play second-row, in the centres. New Zealand are a very physical team, so having a couple of backrowers out a bit wider will probably help us in defence.”

With regular five-eighth Isaac John

surprisingly chosen to make his New Zealand debut against Australia in the Trans-Tasman Test on Friday night, young but experienced halves pairing of Will Smith and Daniel Foster will steer the ship for the Panthers.

“I think it’s always a shock when some-one goes from NSW Cup to representing their country but Isaac would be a first grader at most other clubs, unfortunately he’s behind some experience here at Penrith,” Brennan said.

“Both Foster and Smith have played plenty of games in those positions and they’re more than capable there.”

Despite Penrith’s six-point loss to the Cronulla Sharks last week, they had been enjoying a very good season up until then. After eight weeks of the NSW Cup compe-tition, the Panthers are currently sitting in seventh spot with four wins, three losses and one bye.

Their opponents in the Warriors share a similar win/loss ratio to the Panthers but sit in fourth spot with four wins, two losses and one draw.

“It’s hard not to be pleased about where we are sitting right now,” Brennan said.

“We did struggle the first two weeks

because we were depleted with injuries but most NSW Cup sides, if not all of them, will go through periods this year where they are depleted. It just comes with the nature of the NSW Cup competition.”

Last Saturday the Panthers were beaten in a rollercoaster thriller at the hands of last year’s NSW Cup premiers Cronulla – a loss that didn’t come all that surprising to the man in charge.

“Cronulla are a quality outfit who are drawing from two NRL teams (Sharks and Storm). They are always a strong football side that are well coached,” Brennan said.

“I knew it would be a tough game but I was a little disappointed because I thought the boys worked really hard to not get the result. Errors at bad times really cost us but I thought our defence was outstanding.”

And that defence will be something the Panthers will desperately have to rely on this weekend if they can stop a Warriors outfit that don’t have too much trouble asserting their dominance and scoring points.

The Warriors pack plenty of first grade experience with Kevin Locke at fullback, Dane Neilson in the centres and Sione Lousi at lock.

NATHAN TAYLOR @natetaylor87

Penrith Panthers v New Zealand Warriors

Weather: Chance of rain throughout the afternoon

Kick off: SAT 3/5 • 1.00pmSportingbet Stadium

TV: No coverageRadio: 89.9 Live 1.00pm

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FEATURE STORY

Rep honours for PanthersMatt Moylan and Tim Grant will represent City on Sunday. Inset: Isaac John has been picked for New Zealand. Photos: Melinda Jane

W ith the NRL enjoying a week-end off due to representative fixtures, a whopping 12 Panthers players will still

be in action after getting selected in six representative squads.

The most surprising selection of that dozen is that of Panthers NSW Cup five-eighth Isaac John who was chosen to debut for New Zealand in their battle with World Cup champions Australia in tonight’s Trans-Tasman Test match at Allianz Stadium.

25-year-old John, who has only played three games of first grade this season fill-

ing in for Peter Wallace and Jamie Soward, will have some familiar company with Panthers centre Dean Whare selected to make his eighth appearance for the Kiwis.

With a number of big names missing through injury, some league experts are calling it the worst New Zealand Test side in history.

Meanwhile, another four Panthers play-ers are set to compete on Sunday in the annual City versus Country clash, this year in Dubbo.

Panthers fullback Matt Moylan has won his first major representative honour, named in Brad Fittler’s City line-up along-

side teammate Tim Grant, who will make his fourth straight appearance for City at prop.

For Country, tackling machine and Panthers lock Adam Docker will also make his debut in the game alongside recent Penrith recruit and experienced campaigner Jamal Idris, who was chosen in the centres. Penrith Holden Cup coach Trent Barrett will be in charge of the side.

Meanwhile, a further four Panthers from the NSW Cup competition have been selected to represent Fiji in the Pacific Test at Sportingbet Stadium on Saturday evening.

Wingers Kevin Naiqama and Eto Nabuli, centre Waqa Blake and prop forward Regan Campbell-Gillard will do battle against Samoa for a place in this year’s Four Nations series.

Prior to the Pacific Test, two Panthers young guns will go head-to-head in the Under 20’s State of Origin match.

Centre Isaah Yeo, who made his first grade debut in round one this year, will represent New South Wales while Kierran Moseley will make his second straight appearance for Queensland at hooker.

Plenty of tickets are still available for the double-header at Sportingbet Stadium.

NATHAN TAYLOR @natetaylor87

There’s no NRL games this weekend but that won’t stop fans seeing Penrith Panthers players in action with a host of stars selected for representative duties across the upcoming weekend

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FEATURE STORY

NATHAN TAYLOR @natetaylor87

Aft er being dropped to reserve grade, Tyrone Peachey admits he’s worked on fi ne tuning issues in his game and is fresh for the second third of the season

Peachey hungry to improveP enrith Panthers newcomer

Tyrone Peachey admits a recent stint in the NSW Cup has made him a better player.

After starting the season in Penrith’s top 17, the former Cronulla Shark was dumped to reserve grade by coach Ivan Cleary after just four weeks in the top grade.

Speaking with Extra Time, Peachey said his recent demotion made him hungrier and allowed him to work on a couple of things that needed fine tuning.

“I just wasn’t performing and I got dropped to get my match fitness back up. Everything has worked out,” he said.

“Ivan wanted me to work on my defence and organising players around me, like players pushing up. But the main aspect I’ve been working hard on is my defence and trying to get that better.”

Peachey, the nephew of Sharks legend David Peachey, was signed by the Panthers on a two-year deal to add a spark to Penrith’s attack, something they’ve been struggling with to start the year.

After eight rounds the Panthers have the second lowest attacking points behind the Cronulla Sharks. Peachey, who regularly comes off the interchange bench, said he’s given a strict message by coach Cleary before entering the pitch.

“Just lift the energy and try and get my hands on the ball,” he said.

Peachey also revealed the club were considering turning him from a second-rower/lock into a hooker, possibly to fill the void Kevin Kingston will leave if he moves on at season’s end as predicted.

“They’ve been telling me to work on hooker but I really like second-row and

lock, that’s what I’ve been playing at the moment,” he said.

“I just want to try and get better in those positions at the moment. If anything else happens it happens but right now I’m happy with where I’m at.”

Peachey is now back in first grade and played against his former club at Remon-dis Stadium last weekend.

Tyrone Peachey. Photo: Melinda Jane.

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MOMENT WITH MOLAN

The annual representative fixtures kick off in the NRL this weekend starting with the Trans-Tasman clash between Australia and New Zealand tonight, and finishing up with City versus Country Origin on Sunday afternoon.

Every year there is always debate amongst the public and media whether these two games should go ahead at all, but I think everyone is looking at it the wrong way.

Looking at the line-ups of the Australian and New Zealand sides and, on paper, the Aussie side is far stronger than the Kiwis and I think the odds reflect that.

The likelihood is we’re not going to see a golden point thriller in this one but what we could see is the unearthing of the next NRL superstar.

The Benji Marshall’s and Sonny Bill Williams’ all started somewhere and were once plucked out of oblivion to play their first Test match. Imagine if the little known Kiwi hooker, Siliva Havili, debuting on Friday night becomes an international legend for New Zealand?

Matt Gillett, another debutant for Australia, is also excited to get a run for the first time. For all we know Gillett could go on and play as many games for Australia as Darren Lockyer.

There’s always exciting elements to games even if on paper it doesn’t look like the fairest of contests.

City versus Country is another spectacle we should all be celebrating because we get to see some of our favourite players compete in a different arena.

Thanks to all the ‘Footy Show’ fans who helped us win yet another Logie last Sunday night!

A superstar could be born

ERIN MOLAN @Erin_Molan

Watch Erin Molan on ‘The Footy Show’ every Thursday night at 8.30pm on Channel Nine

Erin with the Logie

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PANTHERS IN PICTURES

Brent Kite takes the ball up for the Panthers

Top 8 goal remains on track

The Panthers are enjoying a weekend off this week but there’s no doubt that the action this season has been fun and exciting, albeit a roller coaster ride. We’ve captured some of the highlights of the NRL season so far

@wwpenrith

The Panthers celebrate a try against the Knights

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1. James Segeyaro tries to break the line 2. Tim Grant had a big game against the Titans 3. Adam Docker took a big hit against the Knights 4. Peter Wallace crosses the linePhotos: Melinda Jane

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B enji is back or at least wants back into the NRL. There are people saying he is coming back for the right reasons as the easy decision

would have been to stay in union and take the cash. He was thrown down a challenge in a new sport and has elected to cut his losses and run. Maybe the harder decision was to stay and learn the game and fight his way back into the rep sides and maybe in time have a chance to be an All Black, which he obviously thought he was going to walk straight into as per SBW.

He wants back into Sydney to pick up his old routine being Channel 9 and ‘The Footy Show’ hence the Sharks seem to be the talk of the town for his signature.

If he is truly coming back for the oppor-tunity to play in the NRL to find the form that deserted him 18 months ago then the Melbourne Storm would be the right fit.

They have a real need for a number six and they have a solid culture and coach that would keep Benji in check and take the pressure away from him.

Time will tell where he ends up and more importantly if he has the drive to make it back to the top.

Onto the Panthers and what a disap-pointing result against the Sharks given they played significant game time without

Todd Carney as well as losing Jono Wright in the warm-up. Given the win against the competition leaders the week before I expected the Panthers to break the win loss streak they have developed but again they fell short with ex-Panther Mick Gordon scoring a pearler.

Somehow the Panthers need to find some consistency after the break if they are going to be a force in the business end of the season.

I still love the City-Country concept

even though it doesn’t amount to much in terms of NSW selection. What it does do is take a quality game to the country and also give some younger players the chance to experience rep footy.

The Test match is usually a one-sided affair given the fact that the NZ boys don’t tend to hit peak fitness until later in the year but I do think that the youngsters that they have picked will certainly do their jumper proud going into the match with a nothing to lose attitude.

PRIDDO'S POINT

Storm would be right fit for Benji 2.0

Benji Marshall back in his Wests Tigers days LUKE PRIDDIS

If Benji Marshall is going anywhere, it should be to the Melbourne Storm, says former Clive Churchill Medal winner Luke Priddis

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PANTHERS NEWS

Peter Wallace

Best moment in the NRL: Playing my fi rst game of OriginWorst moment in the NRL: When Bris-bane lost the fi nal to Melbourne in ‘06Favourite team growing up: PanthersOne player you wished you played with past or present: Brad FittlerFavourite TV show: ‘Family Guy’Favourite band/artist: Foo FightersFavourite guilty pleasure: Chocolate

Back in Panthers colours, Peter Wallace is having a great season

Extra Time Issue Number 009

PRINTED BY Spotpress Pty Ltd / PRODUCED BY The Western Weekender

EDITOR Troy Dodds / 4722 2998 / troy.dodds@westernweekender.com.au

CONTRIBUTORS Nathan Taylor / Luke Priddis / Yvonne Purtell / Erin Molan

SALES MANAGER Simon Gould / 4722 2998 simon.gould@westernweekender.com.au

Flat Panthers

Panthers coach Ivan Cleary

TROY DODDS @troydodds

P anthers coach Ivan Cleary was disappointed in his side’s perfor-mance against Cronulla last Saturday.

The Panthers went down 24-20 and despite leading for much of the game, couldn’t put the Sharks away.

“We weren’t good enough in attack or defence,” Cleary said at the press confer-ence following the game.

“We were way off what we would normally produce.

“Our energy is down... maybe it was the five day turnaround and if that’s the case your execution is going to look a bit worse. It was a flat performance.”

Co-captain Kevin Kingston was equally disappointed that the Panthers didn’t escape with the win.

“Through all our dropped ball and poor defence we still had a chance to win the game and we didn’t do that,” Kingston said.

Both Kingston and Cleary were clearly frustrated at a number of refereeing decisions during the game, including the denying of a try to the Panthers that would have won them the game.

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PANTHERRUMBLINGS

The Penrith Panthers Holden Cup squad have made it four wins straight after a thrilling victory over the Cronulla Sharks last Saturday afternoon at Remondis Stadium.

As usual mistakes and errors were the recipe for this clash but excellent defence and some great attacking raids saw the

Panthers blitz their opponents in front of a handful of fans.

The game went right down to the wire but a crucial Sharks mistake with Penrith in front by two with under 10 minutes to go proved fatal for the home side with the Panthers capitalising on the easy opportu-nities to put the game beyond reach.

Sitting in seventh position, the Panthers will enjoy a well deserved week off, due to the rep round, and will meet the first placed Newcastle Knights next Sunday.

Meanwhile, Penrith’s NSW Cup side failed to do what their younger teammates achieved hours earlier, going down to the Sharks 26-20 in another thriller.

With the Sharks leading for most of the game, the Panthers made it interesting hitting the lead after half time after some brilliant play by hooker Kierran Moseley.

However a crucial error by Kevin Naiqama saw the Sharks get back in front with the minutes ticking down.

This Saturday afternoon the Panthers will look to bounce back against the New Zealand Warriors at Sportingbet Stadium. Read the full game preview on page 2.

Kevin Naiqama

Departing Penrith forward Tim Grant won’t feel too much like an outcast when he joins the Rabbitohs at the end of the year, with teammate Josh Mansour expected to follow him. ‘Sauce’ signed a one-year deal with the Panthers for this season and I’m hearing the Rabbitohs will announce his signature in the very near future. He’s a big loss for the Panthers but with plenty of depth in the outside backs, the club won’t be caught overspending for a winger.

The Sharks may have had the last laugh at Remondis Stadium last Saturday, but before the game the side’s preparations turned into a farce. The ground announcer actually had to put a call out to Blake Ayshford over the loud-speaker to come to the Cronulla dressing room, as he was needed to play in place of Jono Wright, who was injured in the warm-up.

You won’t find too many people who truly believe that last try should have

been awarded to Penrith last weekend, but there’s no doubt that some further clarity is needed on the obstruction rule, as it is confusing fans, players and coaches alike. Panthers coach Ivan Cleary addressed the issue following the loss to the Sharks last weekend: “I have been saying this for over a year... we need to be able to adjudicate as to whether a

player has made a legitimate attempt. We don’t want diving in the game and I don’t think it is that hard to work out.”

In a huge blow to the Panthers, forward Elijah Taylor will be out for around six weeks with a medial ligament injury. Taylor has been a great acquisition for the Panthers, particularly in defence, and will be a big loss particularly in upcoming road trips against the Knights and Raiders.

A young Panther found himself in trouble with the judiciary this week. Moses Leota was hit with a ‘dangerous contact’ charge following an incident in the 31st minute of Penrith’s Holden Cup clash with Cronulla on Saturday. The charge will result in a suspension of three matches.

Whenever sides have a weekend off like the one ahead, it’s time to look out for possible squad changes. I’m told that the club is very, very close to doing a deal with Tigers forward Ben Murdoch-Masila and it could be confirmed as early as this weekend. It would be an immediate transfer, which means Murdoch-Masila may have played his last game in Wests Tigers colours.

The drama over the old Panthers scoreboard is back with suggestions at Penrith City Council on Monday night that it had been sent to the scrapheap. I can confirm that this is definitely not the case. No matter what picture you’ve seen, no matter what your mate told you, no matter what you think you know, I can guarantee you that the scoreboard is in storage. It’s in pieces, and will be reas-sembled at an appropriate time.

The race for a new stadium is heating up with both Blacktown and Parramatta very much declaring they’re in the race. I’m still told the real battle is between Penrith and Liverpool. However, don’t be surprised if much of the decision hinges on the possibility of two new A-League teams being entered into the competi-tion, one in Sydney. Would Panthers dare consider taking on the Wanderers in the soccer world? Watch this space.

Mansour is Redfern bound

Josh Mansour may be heading to the South Sydney Rabbitohs

Send your Panthers gossip atnews@westernweekender.com.au

with the Masked Panther

Lower GRADES

NATHAN TAYLOR @natetaylor87

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S ome years, it’s easy to predict what the season ahead is going to bring. There’s a feel around the place; an indication of sorts on whether there will be smiles or tears come

September.In 2001, off the back of a successful 2000 season,

everyone expected the Panthers to do well. Nobody could have predicted that Penrith would finish with the wooden spoon – but that’s exactly what happened, and it would set off a chain of events that would eventually rock the club.

Showing just how high expectations were in 2001, club legend Steve Carter had knocked back big money in England because he believed the club was a realistic hope of winning the title.

Things started to look shaky in the trials when Melbourne thumped Penrith 40-18 and an emerging Tony Puletua suffered a serious knee injury that would put him out for an extended period.

In round one, Penrith were totally outplayed by arch rivals Parramatta, going down 40-4. To make matters worse, star centre Ryan Girdler was injured in the capitulation.

A 38-22 loss to Brisbane followed, then a 42-34 defeat to the Northern Eagles at Penrith Stadium.

It wasn’t until round 4 that Penrith finally put a win on the board, downing North Queensland 32-18.

Two straight home loses followed – to the Bulldogs and Sharks – and with just one win from the opening six rounds, it was obvious that pre-season expecta-tions were unlikely to be met.

With the side struggling, club officials were becoming aware of growing angst in the playing group, and with a host of stars off contract at the end of the season, they moved to offer stability by re-signing coach Royce Simmons for two years.

It worked. Top priorities Ryan Girdler and Scott Sattler re-signed with the club, Girdler sticking around because he believed the club would win a premiership within three years. Craig Gower also re-signed, shunning an offer from the Bulldogs.

On the field, occasional wins were overshadowed by horrific losses, including a 52-8 defeat to the Warriors at Ericsson Stadium in round 9 and a 58-14 thrashing at the hands of Melbourne in round 11 at

Penrith Stadium. It was Simmons’ press conference following the Warriors game that really summed up where the season was heading.

“There’s blokes down there in that room crying. They’re sitting there, grown men, crying,” he said.

The year then descended into a farce when on August 7, two members of the Panthers Board met with the players without Simmons, and asked them to air their grievances. It was the beginning of the end for Simmons’ coaching at the Panthers. After a 60-18 defeat to Newcastle in the final round, the final nail was placed in the coffin and it was confirmed that Simmons would move on.

A year nobody saw coming

Chris Hicks in action in 2001

The fi nal nail was placed in the coffi n and it was confi rmed that Simmons would move on

PANTHERS FLASHBACK

TROY DODDS @troydodds

FROM THE VAULT

From the vault this week comes this amazing piece of history from Penrith’s 1991 premiership season. Very few people would have had this item in the fi rst place, let alone kept it, but we’ve got our hands on it. It’s the offi cial program from the 1991 Grand Final breakfast. Both teams were in attendance at what was a fantastic function.

It will be one of the biggest games of the season and The Western Weekender wants you to experience all the power and electricity of the Panthers v Eels at Sportingbet Stadium on Friday, May 30.

See Panthers stars like James Segeyaro, Matt Moylan, Jamie Soward and Peter Wallace up against the likes of Jarryd Hayne, Will Hopoate and Nathan Peats.

The Panthers v Eels will be the hottest ticket in town, and even better, it’s Friday night football!

We’ve got two double passes to give away to the Panthers v Eels game on Friday, May 30 at 7.30pm.

For your chance to win one, email troy.dodds@westernweek-ender.com.au with Panthers in the subject line. Entries close May 21. Authorised under NSW Permit No LTPM/14/00047.

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