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Four games to go – that’s it, then it’s finals time again. Aside from the ridiculously long wait until the 2015 season, there’s something else that’s bugging me.
It’s the “I know more about rugby league than anyone else” gurus, pros and experts and their ladder predictions.
I know, it’s a bit of a siege mentality I have here. I’ll be honest, being a Panthers fan, seeing them in third and seeing these folks say that we will be lucky to finish sixth.
Really? Why, because they can’t beat a Manly side that Souths practically belted? Penrith weren’t supposed to win against the Doggies, but they did and they followed it up by beating the Dragons in the Illawarra.
Jamie Soward wasn’t a good buy, ya’ll were screaming at the start of the year. What about now?
Brent Kite was too old, I read, and the rest were untried, or not premiership quality. Please, enlighten me as to how Peter Wallace, playing alongside the great Darren Lockyer, isn’t a quality half? In what world was James Segeyaro not a gun player?
Look, bias aside, what makes you think Penrith can’t finish in the top four? The draw? They’ve made a pretty good mockery of it all so far this year. Three out of the next four games are at home, and we all know Penrith has been a good fortress for the Panthers this season.
Let’s look at it this way. In Round 23, we have a Monday night game against the Cowboys, at Penrith. The Cowboys, a team notorious for being easy-beats on the road. I would not read much into their flogging of the Tigers last week as anyone could have done that, even Cronulla.
I call it Penrith 28-24 over JT’s Cowboys.
Round 24 sees Melbourne in Penrith, again on a Monday (love those long turn-arounds). A team falling apart, if Bellamy’s rants are anything to go buy. I see this as a win for Penny, possibly a flogging for the Storm, too. I’m calling it 32-12 to the Panthers.
Round 25 sees a Sunday game in Brooky for the Panthers, and this I see as a loss for Penrith, as they rarely do well at Brookvale Oval. I”m calling it 24-18 to Manly. This leaves the final round, a home game for Penrith, on Sunday again.
It’s the late game against a patchy Warriors outfit, and I see Penrith walking away with the points here, too, but a closer 24-22 game, if Shaun Johnson and Konrad Hurrell play. If not, Penrith 48-10.
This sees Penrith lock-in third spot and should see them to the grand final qualifier. There, I think the Panthers lack of experience will let them down, unless somehow Wallace makes it back into the side.
In which case, anything is possible.
My reason behind this? Their constant refusal to let you ‘know-it-alls’ dictate to them how their form should be, given all those stars on the sidelines. I think Gus Gould and Ivan Cleary have instilled a ‘never say die’ attitude at the foot of the mountains. Gus never throws in the towel, and I think he’s taught that to the boys in black.
I just hope, if we do make it to the grand final, that pink jersey stays in the stands, on a few fans. Soward to make a show if it all, and Segeyaro to win the Clive Churchill for another insane amount of tackles, a try or two, and several assists.
Kevin who?
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