The Panthers showed impressive defensive steel to claim a gritty 10-8 victory over Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs at Belmore Sportsground on Saturday.
The Bulldogs enjoyed the majority of field position in the opening period of the game however the Panthers defensive line was up to the task time and time again.
It took until the 28th minute of play for the Bulldogs to open the scoring through a penalty goal to halfback Brandon Wakeman.
A Daine Laurie counter-attack gave the Panthers some much needed field position late in the half. Dean Blore took the line on however was held up by some strong Bulldogs defence.
HALF-TIME: Bulldogs 2-0.
The Panthers enjoyed an even share of possession to open the second half. Fullback Daine Laurie pounced on a grubber kick to score the first four-pointer of the game in the 42nd minute of play. Halfback Brendan Hands converted from close range to give the Panthers a 6-2 lead.
Just three minutes later Brian Too found himself in space and sprinted down the right hand touchline to score back-to-back tries for the Panthers. Hands conversion attempt was waved away, giving the Panthers a 10-2 lead with less than 25 minutes to play.
The Bulldogs hit back in the 52 minute of the game after a great exchange of passes saw halfback Wakeman cross close to the posts. The conversion was successful, bringing the score to 10 points to 8 in favour of the Panthers.
The Panthers defensive line repelled multiple attacking raids in the final minutes of play to record a two-point victory over the Bulldogs.
FULL-TIME: Panthers 10-8
