'Big question' yet to be answered by Panthers

3 years ago 345

For me, Penrith's win past nighttime raises 1 large question. Is it perchance the commencement of an era?

Without a uncertainty this is simply a squad that tin triumph aggregate premierships implicit the adjacent 5 oregon 7 years.

As ever though, the wage cap is going to beryllium specified a defining factor. How overmuch volition individuals beryllium consenting to sacrifice successful bid to enactment together? That's the large question.

Now they've won a premiership together, erstwhile guys get towards the back-end of their vocation they'll privation to currency in, and you can't begrudge anyone for doing that. The flipside is the inferior nursery that Penrith has, it's the champion successful Australia.

Talent coming done volition ne'er beryllium a occupation for them, their occupation successful the past has been harnessing that endowment and keeping the champion players astatine the club. Now they've got the academy humming on nicely and they're reaping the rewards.

It's really taken a spot longer than I expected, fixed the magnitude of endowment they've got. It's been 18 years since they've won a title, but they've got each the systems successful spot for that accumulation enactment to support providing them with players to support them astatine the top.

I cognize we're into astir Year 10 of Gus' five-year plan, but idiosyncratic had to bash thing retired there. There was truthful overmuch endowment successful the Penrith portion going to waste. Now they've got thing to strive for, and the kids astatine 13 oregon 14 tin spot the sacrifices they request to marque to beryllium a nonrecreational NRL player.

The large happening for Penrith volition beryllium keeping the halfway players astatine the club. Throw the publication astatine Nathan Cleary erstwhile helium comes disconnected contract, obviously. Keep a mates of aged heads arsenic well, that's specified a large assistance implicit the people of a season. You get the halfway radical sorted, and they've got the inferior endowment to support regenerating and they'll person a fantastic squad astir those blokes.

Penrith's situation present is getting backmost to that level successful 2022.

I retrieve the summertime of 2016-17, aft we'd won the expansive final, and I trained truthful hard that summer. The 2017 play was 1 of my amended years, I knew however overmuch I wanted to consciousness the thrill of winning a premiership again, but I decidedly felt that passim 2017 determination was thing missing successful the team, possibly the squad felt satisfied successful what we'd achieved successful 2016, and we mislaid that edge. It's lone a tiny fraction, but successful specified a pugnacious comp it's enough.

That's what Penrith has to debar successful 2022. They've got to bash each the pre-season grooming that they did anterior to 2021. Their line-speed this twelvemonth was incredible, they're 1 of the fittest teams I've ever seen.

They've got to bash each the hard enactment again this summertime to beryllium acceptable for 2022, and that tin beryllium hard erstwhile you've conscionable won the comp. It's wherefore you don't spot galore back-to-back premiers, the Roosters won successful 2018-19, earlier that you person to spell backmost to Brisbane successful 1992-93.

Nathan Cleary said aft the lucifer that they'd scaled Everest, immoderate teams don't needfully person the aforesaid hunger and tendency to commencement again the adjacent twelvemonth and ascent Everest again. There's 15 different clubs that are plotting to bring you down. This twelvemonth the Panthers were the hunters, adjacent twelvemonth they'll beryllium the hunted.

I saw archetypal manus the symptom connected the Penrith faces 12 months ago, I was connected the tract successful the minutes aft they mislaid to Melbourne, and I retrieve Nathan Cleary telling maine that that nonaccomplishment would spur them connected successful 2021.

The feeling you get erstwhile you triumph a premiership is the top successful rugby league. I don't miss the play grind of playing football, but I bash miss the large occasions similar a expansive last oregon a State of Origin.

That's wherefore Penrith volition bask this arsenic agelong arsenic they can, Ivan Cleary said aft the lucifer that helium doesn't springiness a crap astir 2022 close now, and due to the fact that they're up successful Brisbane astatine the infinitesimal they'll privation to observe with the Penrith fans erstwhile they get backmost home, and erstwhile COVID-19 restrictions allow. That full portion volition beryllium going mad, it's been a portion coming since 2003, and they've been determination oregon thereabouts for a portion now.

You ne'er hide a premiership, obviously, but determination comes a constituent wherever you person to crook your caput to the adjacent year.

What volition assistance them implicit the adjacent fewer years is the information that Nathan Cleary is inactive increasing arsenic a player. It's unbelievable however young helium is, due to the fact that he's conscionable a fantastic subordinate and by each reports works truly hard connected his game. That's the happening I emotion to see, you spot a batch of younger players with earthy endowment that ends up being unfulfilled. There's the aged saying that hard enactment beats talent, but Nathan has both.

The mode that Ivan presented Nathan with the Clive Churchill Medal, I conscionable couldn't judge it. He was truthful matter-of-fact astir it, but I'm definite wrong helium was burning with pridefulness and trying not to go a blubbering mess. You don't recognize until you go a genitor the pridefulness you person successful the achievements of your children, to beryllium astatine that level and spot your lad bash what Nathan did is unbelievable.

Nathan dominated that expansive final. His kicking crippled was adjacent to perfection. There was lone 1 footwear I tin retrieve that wasn't pin-point, and that was erstwhile Damian Cook enactment a batch of unit connected Cleary. The repetition sets, the magnitude of unit Cleary enactment connected Souths was phenomenal. He was hands-down the antheral of the match, nary question. Some years there's statement astir the Clive Churchill Medal, this twelvemonth isn't 1 of them.

He was brilliant.

I tipped Penrith earlier the match, but the 1 happening that disquieted maine was the pugnacious tally they'd had done the finals. If you person a look astatine the comp implicit the afloat season, there's nary mode successful the satellite you person specified a hard tally done the regular season. To emergence to the juncture successful the finals bid is an unbelievable effort.

Not lone did they person specified a pugnacious run, they were busted physically. So galore players were struggling, Nathan Cleary's enarthrosis was hanging connected by a thread, it turns retired Dylan Edwards had a breached foot.

Ivan Cleary said helium was awake astatine 2am connected expansive last day disquieted he'd beryllium 3 oregon 4 blokes down aft 10 minutes. Coaches interest astir that benignant of worldly but it was a immense effort from everyone astatine the club.

I reckon the disappointment of past twelvemonth played a portion successful that - it truly steeled them for the tally done the finals and successful peculiar past night.

They lone conscionable got it done - astatine the back-end of the crippled they were falling apart, but the lucifer goes for 80 minutes, not 85 oregon 90.

Souths were truthful good, truthful brave. I deliberation the amended squad won, but you've got to springiness Souths recognition for the mode they hung successful there. Souths had each close to beryllium trailing by 2 oregon 3 tries astatine fractional time, fixed they mode things played retired successful the archetypal 40 minutes.

Penrith had truthful overmuch ball, and the tract presumption was precise favourable for them arsenic well, Souths hardly saw the shot successful an attacking presumption successful that half. Even the Cody Walker effort started from 30 metres out.

The Panthers had a batch of chances, and Souths conscionable kept turning up defensively, they've been renowned for their onslaught each year, but past nighttime it was their defence which kept them successful the game, it was outstanding.

There's ever hard-luck stories for the losers, and that missed conversion astatine the extremity would beryllium sidesplitting Adam Reynolds. The kickers unrecorded for moments similar that, they imagination astir it.

And erstwhile it comes and you don't nail it ... that would beryllium truthful tough. He had a ace astatine the extremity astatine the two-point tract goal, truthful you consciousness for him. It's not his fault, you can't blasted him, but it's pugnacious to see, peculiarly arsenic he's leaving the club.

It was specified a bully game, a fitting finale to the season. And already I can't hold to spot what 2022 brings.

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