Following two years of rebuilding under Ivan Cleary, this season will shape up as an important one for the Penrith Panthers if they are to return to the finals and become the force that its fans believe it can be.
After just dodging the wooden spoon in 2012, the Panthers made big inroads last season, finishing 10th and winning eleven of their 24 matches as they fought hard to remain in finals contention throughout the year.
Such is the excitement building at the foot of the mountains this year, over the last twelve months the club has enjoyed an influx of players and memberships, and it will remain to be seen whether the continued support of the fans and the new recruits can return the Panthers to the summit of the competition.
The players
The Panthers’ arrival lounge is overcrowded as Phil Gould, the club’s General Manager, sets about the task of turning the club into one of the world’s most marketable brands in the near future.
Heading the arrivals at the foot of the mountains is Peter Wallace, who returns home after six years at the Brisbane Broncos, Brent Kite, whose nine years at the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles netted two premierships, and Jamie Soward, whose time at the Dragons, with whom he won the premiership in 2010, came to a rocky end last year.
Also arriving at Penrith are Tyrone Peachey, Kevin Naiqama (the brother of Wes), Elijah Taylor and Jamal Idris, who was released from his contract at the Titans so he could return home to Sydney.
They join a team which have, over the last two years, unearthed new and rising stars such as Matt Moylan, Adam Docker and Josh Mansour, to name a few. They also join recent imports to the club in recent years, namely Sika Manu, James Segeyaro, Dean Whare and Jeremy Latimore.
The arrivals have offset the departures of Luke Walsh and Mose Masoe, both of whom have departed for the English Super League, as well as Lachlan Coote, whose mission to replace Matt Bowen at the Cowboys is already over before it’s even started after he suffered a suspected ACL injury at the Auckland Nines, Blake Austin, Clint Newton, Brad Tighe and Travis Robinson.
It is widely expected that, after the losses of Coote and Walsh over the off-season, new import Soward and Wallace, who returns to the club where he made his NRL debut in 2005, will be the first choice halves pairing.
Both players are former State of Origin representatives for New South Wales and made their names at the Dragons and Broncos respectively, with the former leading the Dragons to the premiership in 2010 and the latter providing some stability in the halves at the Broncos.
However, both players will be feeling the heat this season as they look to direct a Penrith attack which scored just under 500 points in 2013, and also take them back to the finals for what would be only the second time in the past decade.
Idris, after arriving home from the Gold Coast Titans, will look to recapture the form that saw him named “Rookie of the Year” in 2009 and score a try on his lone State of Origin appearance for New South Wales.
Kite is a two-time Manly premiership player and his experience will be of good value to a forward pack which features Sika Manu, Adam Docker, Tim Grant and Sam McKendry.
Overall, the playing list is a well-assembled one and there will be no excuses if their talent don’t translate into on-field success this coming season.
The draw
The Panthers will have a tough opening to their 2014 season, with a home match against Newcastle to precede a second round trip to Melbourne, where they have not won since 2005.
The club will get another shot at those two clubs later in the season, and will also double up against the Bulldogs, Warriors, Eels, Raiders, Sharks, Titans and Dragons.
The two matches against the Dragons will give Jamie Soward the chance to inflict the last laugh on the club that dumped him midway through last season, likewise, Peter Wallace and Brent Kite will have points to prove when they oppose their old clubs in Rounds 18 and 25 respectively.
The Panthers will only get one shot at the premiers, the Sydney Roosters, but thankfully their lone showdown in Round 19 will come shortly after the State of Origin series has concluded.
As always, the two meetings against fellow western rivals Parramatta won’t want to be missed, despite the recent struggles of both clubs in recent times.
It’s not an easy draw for the Panthers, but if they can notch up more than just at least half of their home fixtures, then the team will be bound for big things this year.
The verdict
The Panthers have assembled their best playing roster in a decade and now it’s the new recruits who will have to let their football do the talking.
As has already been mentioned, new halves Jamie Soward and Peter Wallace will be expected to shoulder the burden of the club’s on-field attack, and will bear all the criticism should the team fail to produce the results.
2008 Clive Churchill Medallist Brent Kite joins an all-class forward pack which is led by Origin prop Tim Grant and Kiwi Test bookend Sam McKendry, and there’s no doubt his addition will add more grunt to the tackling engine.
Although I expect the club to continue to improve on the field, I think they will fall just short of a finals berth, the difference being the gulf that separates them and the best teams in the competition.
Prediction
9th
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