Belmore Sports Ground
Friday, May 16
Kick-off: 6.00pm
Referee: Adam Cassidy
PANTHERS – 1. Kieran MOSS 2. Eto NABULI 3. Nathan SMITH 4. Will SMITH 5. Kevin NAIQAMA 6. Luke CAPEWELL 7. Daniel FOSTER 8. Sam ANDERSON 9. Kierran MOSELEY 10. Reagan CAMPBELL-GILLARD 11. Ben MURDOCH-MASILA 12. Anthony CHERRINGTON 13. Bryce CARTWRIGHT INTERCHANGE: 14. Liam AYOUB 15. Tom EISENHUTH 16. Leilani LATU 17. Vaipuna TIA KILIFI
COACH: GARTH BRENNAN
BULLDOGS – 1. Tyrone PHILLIPS 2. Corey THOMPSON 3. Levi DODD 4. Krisnan INU 5. Kayne BRENNAN 6. Patrick TEMPLEMAN 7. Jaline GRAHAM 8. Lloyd PERRETT 9. Damien COOK 10. Harlan ALAALATOA 11. Lachlan BURR 12. Reni MAITUA 13. Pat O’HANLON
INTERCHANGE: 14. Makahesi MAKATOA 15. Steve AZZI 16. Ed MURPHY 19. David MINUTE 20. Lindon MCGRADY
COACH: ANDREW PATMORE
It’s 4th v 12th tomorrow night when the Panthers face off against the Bulldogs at Belmore Oval, in what’s set to be an exciting battle between two heavyweight teams who have had very different starts to the 2014 season.
Penrith has won 6 of its 9 games, while the Doggies’ results are the opposite, with 7 losses, 2 wins and a draw. However, the last two weeks have seen the Canterbury-Bankstown side turn a corner, with a win over the North Sydney Bears and then a nail-biting loss to the second placed Cutters.
The Panthers had a convincing win over the Knights last weekend, even though most of their points were scored in the last 20 minutes of the game. They ran in 6 unanswered tries to steal the match from under Newcastle’s nose.
But we suffered a major blow with Isaac John rupturing his Achilles two minutes into the game, which will see him sidelined for the rest of the season. Daniel Foster came off the bench to replace him last week, and despite a bit of a shaky start in the position, Coach Garth Brennan is confident he will get comfortable quickly.
We made a few mistakes with the ball last weekend and the boys will be keen to have a much cleaner game this week. Our defence was outstanding again with superb performances from Anthony Cherrington and Waqa Blake. Will Smith and Luke Capewell were proactive on attack and led the team nicely around the park, and we’ll be looking for a repeat performance from them.
Captain Nathan Smith has been moved into the centres to shut down Krisnan Inu and provide a bit of leadership to our wingers, but that’s about the only other change from last weekend’s squad.
In the Bulldogs camp, Patrick Templeton’s move to five-eighth has definitely sharpened their attack and his kicking game is giving them a lot more opportunities to get close to their line. This side is capable of beating any other team in the league when they put their minds to it, so the Panthers will need their heads in the game for the full 80 minutes.
