Newly re-signed centre Izack Tago produced his finest game as a Panther to help the premiers to a 26-18 win over the Eels at BlueBet Stadium on Friday night.
Having secured his future through to 2028, the 21-year-old came up with a try, six line breaks and 273 run metres as the champs held off their western Sydney rivals in a quality contest.
After losing winger Bailey Simonsson to a HIA in the opening minute the Eels regrouped to open the scoring when hooker Joey Lussick plunged over from dummy half in just the third minute.
The premiers hit back eight minutes later when Nathan Cleary laid on a pinpoint grubber for Dylan Edwards to score as the last two Clive Churchill Medal winners stamped their class on the match.
Sunia Turuva Try
Another of Penrith's grand final heroes stood tall in the 16th minute when Moses Leota charged over from 30 metres out to give the Panthers a 12-6 lead.
The Eels hit back in the 22nd minute when back-rower Shaun Lane surged into the back field courtesy of a deft short ball from Dylan Brown.
No sooner had Eels fans finished celebrating that four-pointer than Penrith hit back through Sunia Turuva, who slid under a Clint Gutherson cover tackle to finish off a sweeping raid that featured Isaah Yeo, Edwards and Tago.
Shaun Lane Try
Leading 16-12 the Panthers should have gone further ahead when they went to the left side and Brian To'o flew into the corner but replays showed he had lost the ball short of the line.
The Eels made the most of that reprieve when Brown again turned provider with a brilliant short ball for J'maine Hopgood to score and the visitors took an 18-16 lead to the sheds on the back of completing 19 of 20 sets.
The Panthers exploded out of the blocks in the second half with tries to Turuva in the 53rd minute off a Yeo kick and Tago in the 55th minute to blow the scoreline out to 26-18.
With eight minutes to play the Eels threatened to get back into the game but To'o came up with a big defensive play and the Panthers came away.
Two minutes later the Eels mounted another raid but Gutherson's clever flick pass to Mitch Moses went to ground and the blue and golds' brave challenge had come up short.
This article contains content that is only available on NRL.com
Match Snapshot
- Panthers five-eighth Jarome Luai was placed on report in the second minute for a dangerous tackle which saw Eels winger Bailey Simonsson sent for a HIA which he failed.
- Eels forward J'maine Hopgood was placed on report in the 30th minute for a dangerous tackle.
- Panthers centre Izack Tago ran for 273 metres and had nine tackle breaks in a superb display.
- Panthers winger Sunia Turuva has scored try doubles in his past three games at BlueBet Stadium.
J'maine Hopgood Try
- Junior Paulo led the way up front for the Eels with 155 metres from 15 runs in 53 minutes of game time.
- The Panthers lost their captain's challenge in the 69th minute when they challenged a knock on call but replays showed Izack Tago had made an error.
- The Panthers have won 11 of their past 12 games at BlueBet Stadium.
- Dylan Edwards ran for 226 metres for the Panthers while his rival fullback Clint Gutherson racked up 141 metres.
- The Panthers had nine line breaks to Parra's three.
Dylan Edwards Try
Play of the Game
In a high-quality contest packed with highlights, Moses Leota's barnstorming try in the 16th minute deserves special mention. Taking the ball 30 metres out from the line, the man who famously grabbed a four-pointer to help his team get back into the 2023 grand final took off on an inspired charge. Leota wasn't to be stopped as he planted the ball down for the 13th try of his career.
Moses Leota Try
What They Said
"It was much better than last week in terms of energy and urgency. Lots of things we came to do tonight, we did, but some very uncharacteristic defensive lapses kept them not just in the game but they were actually ahead at half-time. The second half was pretty solid but we left a lot of tries out there, but the fact we created opportunities the week after not scoring a point is pleasing. I don't think you'll see those defensive lapses again. Maybe it's a bit of a lack of confidence, we don't quite have our game together at the moment." - Panthers coach Ivan Cleary
Panthers: Round 2
"I thought we were extremely tough. We had a few things go against us which we just have to suck it up and deal with. I didn't think we did a lot wrong as a footy team. We kept fighting right to the end but not a lot went right for us with a couple of calls I reckon. What I really liked about Dylan Brown's performance and our performance as a team was we didn't get flustered, we stayed calm. They kept responding to each other and we toughed it out." - Eels coach Brad Arthur
Eels: Round 2
What's Next
The Panthers open Round 3 with the grand final rematch against the Broncos at BlueBet Stadium on Thursday. The Eels have a blockbuster of their own to look forward to with Manly visiting CommBank Stadium on Sunday.