'He takes it personal': Panthers know Latrell influence a big factor

Penrith co-captains Nathan Cleary and Isaah Yeo are well-aware of the influence Latrell Mitchell brings to the Rabbitohs but insist they won’t be flustered by his presence in the preliminary final on Saturday night.

The pair have been Mitchell’s NSW teammate at Origin level but missed the opportunity to line up against the Souths fullback in last year’s grand final due to his suspension.

While Mitchell’s own statistical output hasn’t been too high in the past two weeks of the finals, his star power effect on the Bunnies has them full of confidence to knock off the defending champions in the grand final qualifier.

“He takes it personal with the opposition he’s up against with all those individual battles, you can feel that and ultimate confidence in himself,” Yeo said on Monday.

“That shows in the way he plays and the way he talks to the media. He’s so confident with what he can do and backs it up. When you talk as much as he can you’ve got to back it up and he certainly does that.

“He’s not so much a Dylan Edwards who touches the ball 25 times. He might touch it 10 or 15 but in that he seems to be setting up 2-3 tries or scoring one himself.

“It’s a matter of knowing where he is at all times and making sure you’re doing a job around him.”

Mitchell delivered a similiar performance in Penrith's round 23 clash with the Rabbitohs, recording four line-break assists and two try assists in the match despite limited touches.

The Panthers kicked to the corners on that night and limited Mitchell's kick returns.

Cleary admired Mitchell's form return helping the Rabbitohs to a fifth-straight preliminary final.

“I've known Latrell for a while, he's one of a kind and there are not too many people that can do what he does on the field,” Cleary said.

“He looks very confident at the moment. He's obviously come back from that America trip and is looking great. It's great to watch and it's going to be a great challenge to come up against.

“The thing about Latrell is he can pop up at any time and he's a real extractor. So it's just being aware of that, just trying to contain him together.

“If you're trying to do it by yourself there's not too many people that can go at him one on one and come off best."

Yeo said the Panthers also wouldn't be drawn into anything off the ball after the Roosters were unsettled in the opening week of the finals.

"I feel like we do that well, I can’t really remember too many times we’ve lost our heads as a group. We hold ourselves pretty accountable," Yeo said.

"I can’t see that being a drama and it helps that we’ve played in a few big games the last few years. You can lean back on those experiences."