PANTHERS v WESTS TIGERS
Leichardt Oval
Sunday, 6th July
Kickoff: 3pm
TEAMS
PANTHERS: 1. Matt MOYLAN, 2. Josh MANSOUR, 3. Dean WHARE, 4. Jamal IDRIS, 5. Kevin NAIQAMA, 6. Jamie SOWARD, 7. Peter WALLACE (c), 8. Sam MCKENDRY, 9. James SEGEYARO, 10. Brent KITE, 11. Sika MANU, 12. Elijah TAYLOR, 13. Adam DOCKER
INTERCHANGE: 14. Tyrone PEACHEY, 15. Jeremy LATIMORE, 16. Lewis BROWN, 17. Nigel PLUM, 18. Bryce CARTWRIGHT
WESTS TIGERS: 1. Blake AUSTIN, 2. David NOFOALUMA, 3. Keith LULIA, 4. Chris LAWRENCE, 5. Pat RICHARDS, 6. Braith ANASTA, 7. Luke BROOKS, 8. Martin TAUPAU, 9. Joal LUANI, 10. Keith GALLOWAY, 11. Curtis SIRONEN, 12. Bodene THOMPSON, 13. Adam BLAIR
INTERCHANGE: 14. Dene HALATAU, 15. Ava SEUMANUFAGAI, 16. Sitaleki AKAUOLA, 17. Jack BUCHANAN
Leichardt Oval will play host to the clash of the big cats this Sunday, when the Panthers take on the Tigers in what promises to be one of the blockbuster matches of round 17.
Penrith lost their first game in six weeks last weekend, going down to the Warriors 30-20 in Auckland, while Wests Tigers staged a courageous 19-18 victory over the Raiders at Campbelltown.
The good news for the Panthers is that Jamie Soward is expected to play this weekend, despite suffering a bizarre ankle injury that saw him sidelined for the second half of the Warriors match. Scans show there was no major damage, and he will be given right up until game time to prove his fitness.
The Tigers are a very different story after they picked up four injuries last weekend. It looks like they’ll be without James Tedesco for the rest of the season after he broke his patella and had to have surgery, Tim Simona copped a mouth injury and won’t be back for a few weeks, while David Nofoaluma also hurt his knee but is expected to play on Sunday.
They will also be missing Robbie Farrah and Aaron Woods who have been named in the Blues Origin side for Game 3 next week.
Tigers Coach Mick Potter has managed to fill the holes and although he admits the absence of those players will affect the way his team plays, he is confident the replacements he has chosen will step up and get the job done.
Panthers Coach Ivan Cleary has been able to name a full strength side with Jamal Idris officially back in the starting line-up. Dave Simmons is the only player still out of action, with Kevin Naiqama earning the call up from NSW Cup to play on the wing.
Despite the loss last weekend, Ivan says we played well in the first half and stuck to our game plan, but silly mistakes let us down at the back end of the match. The Tigers will be an unpredictable side this week with all of the changes, so we will need to stay focused for the full 80 minutes and use every player on the park to get us over the line.
