After a long season, Penrith and South Sydney now find themselves just 80 minutes away from a Grand Final appearance as the two sides prepare to face off in Saturday's Preliminary Final.
The minor premiers and defending champions, Penrith will come into the contest well rested and ready for the clash, having enjoyed a week off after downing Parramatta in their Qualifying Final a fortnight ago.
Given coach Ivan Cleary rested 13 of his players in their final regular season game of the year against the Cowboys, the majority of Penrith's side will head into Saturday's Preliminary Final having played just one game in close to four weeks — priming them for a mouthwatering clash against the red-hot Rabbitohs.
South Sydney once again booked their ticket in the Preliminary Finals — as they have done for the past five years now — with a convincing victory over Cronulla just six days after a similarly dominant win over the Roosters at Allianz Stadium.
Match Highlights: Sharks v Rabbitohs
The cardinal and myrtle are no strangers to facing the men from the mountain sin the finals, having gone down to Penrith in each of the last three years finals series — headlined by last year's Grand Final defeat and that Stephen Crichton try.
So will it be the Rabbitohs who finally deliver the knockout finals blow they have been unable to land in the last three years against Penrith, or will it be the Panthers who continue their dominance and secure their spot in a third straight Grand Final?
The Rundown
Team news
Panthers: Mitch Kenny will start the game at hooker with Api Koroisau to come from the bench as they did in Week 1 against the Eels. The minor premiers will be without Taylan May after he accepted a one-week ban for his high tackle on Will Penisini in the Qualifying Final. His omission sees Charlie Staines come into the side on the wing for his 14th game of the season. Spencer Leniu is free to play after accepting a monetary fine for his high tackle. Sean O'Sullivan is 18th Man.
Rabbitohs: No further changes on game day after winger Alex Johnston was ruled out on Friday with a hip flexor injury. His place is taken by Richard Kennar. Bench forward Siliva Havili (calf) will miss the match, replaced by Jed Cartwright, who has recovered from a hamstring injury and will play his first game since Round 20. Jai Arrow is good to go after suffering a groin injury against last week. Davvy Moale is 18th Man.
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Key Match-ups
Apisai Koroisau v Damien Cook
Blues teammates Apisai Koroisau and Damien Cook will go head-to-head on Saturday as they square off in an intriguing clash between the two No.9s. Remarkably, Cook has lost more games against Koroisau than any other hooker in his career with just three wins and eight defeats from their 11 matchups. The Rabbitohs rake has set up four tries in his last six games and continues to be a threat close to the line — as does his opposite number, Koroisau, whose 12 try assists this year are more than he has recorded in the last four years combined.
Nathan Cleary v Lachlan Ilias
Nathan Cleary returned from his month-long suspension with aplomb against Parramatta, dominating the Eels with his superb kicking game to book the Panthers' spot in another Qualifying Final. There's no doubting the talent and class of the Kangaroos hopeful and, if he is on his game against the Rabbitohs, will go a long way towards sending Penrith to another Grand Final. His opposite number, Ilias, however, has been highly impressive over the past month and continues to improve the deeper the Rabbitohs go in this year's finals. As important as his attack is Ilias' defensive work in forcing turnover tackles — a department he'll certainly have his hands full with on Saturday with Viliame Kikau running at him all night.
Ilias is alright
Stat Attack
No team has conceded fewer points this year than Penrith, who average just 13.5 points against per game. One quarter of the tries the Panthers have conceded this year, however, come from kicks, which could open the door for the Rabbitohs to cause some problems on Saturday night. The strength of South Sydney is their running game, however, with the Rabbitohs recording more linebreaks and linebreak assists than any team this year. Souths also rank first when it comes to metres gained from offloads, a department the Panthers will need to keep an eye on if they are to shut down the dangerous attacking players of their opponents.
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