Sportingbet Stadium, Penrith
Monday 14th July
Kickoff: 7pm
TEAMS -
PANTHERS: 1. Matt MOYLAN, 2. Josh MANSOUR, 3. Dean WHARE, 4. Jamal IDRIS, 5. Kevin NAIQAMA, 6. Tyrone PEACHEY, 7. Jamie SOWARD, 8. Sam MCKENDRY, 9. James SEGEYARO, 10. Brent KITE, 11. Sika MANU, 12. Elijah TAYLOR, 13. Adam DOCKER
INTERCHANGE: 14. Lewis BROWN, 15. Jeremy LATIMORE, 16. Nigel PLUM, 17. Bryce CARTWRIGHT
COACH: Ivan CLEARY
BRONCOS: 1. Ben BARBA, 2. Daniel VIDOT, 3. Jack REED, 4. Justin HODGES (c), 5. Dale COPLEY, 6. Josh HOFFMAN, 7. Ben HUNT, 8. Josh MCGUIRE, 9. Andrew MCCULLOUGH, 10. Corey PARKER (c), 11. Alex GLENN, 12. Matt GILLETT, 13. Sam THAIDAY
INTERCHANGE: 14. Ben HANNANT, 15. David HALA, 16. Corey OATES, 17. Todd LOWRIE, 18. Jake GRANVILLE, 19. Jarrod WALLACE, 20. David STAGG
COACH: Anthony GRIFFIN
After a BYE and two weeks on the road, Penrith will be keen to get back in front of a home crowd when they take on the Broncos at Sportingbet Stadium on Monday night.
Our at-home record has been strong this season having only lost one game at the foot of the mountains, but Brisbane is going to be a very tough challenge.
Ivan Cleary’s boys posted a solid win over Wests Tigers last weekend, edging out Manly for the top-of-the-table spot, while the Broncos have had a full two weeks off to think about their disappointing loss to the Sharks at home.
Anthony Griffin has decided to name all five of his Origin players for Monday’s clash, and if they all pull up fit after Game III he will be able to throw a full strength side at Penrith. He’s also put forward an extended seven-man bench, just in case.
The Panthers will be without Captain Pete Wallace for the next six weeks after he suffered knee and ankle injuries during last weekend’s match. Tyrone Peachey moved into the halves to cover Pete last week and Ivan has decided to play him there again this week for the full 80 minutes, with Bryce Cartwright coming onto the bench to fill the hole.
History shows the Broncos have had better success against the Panthers over the years, but the mountain men have won three of their last five clashes, including the last two games at Sportingbet Stadium.
The Panthers have been lucky not to have any players called away for rep duty, meaning we’ve been able to field a near full strength side every week while other teams have been depleted. But we have also been playing some good football, with some describing the current squad as the perfect mix of youth and experience.
The combination of young guns like Cartwright, Yeo and Peachey and the expertise of Soward, Wallace, Whare and Kite has made for a perfect mix on the field, and hopefully we can keep the momentum going as we head towards the finals.
