I like Phil Gould’s taste in seafood almost as much as I like his taste in player recruitment.
Penrith’s decision to sell off big-name but hugely expensive players and bring in replacements the club saw as fitting in better with its plans of becoming a premiership force again received enormous scrutiny.
But we’re seeing the positive results now. The Panthers have been one of the best teams of the opening two rounds of the NRL and, after opening with a terrific win over the Knights, were unlucky not to win a fantastic game on the road against Melbourne on Saturday.
Now, whether or not you like Gould as a television commentator and newspaper columnist, you’ve surely got to admire his resilience. He doesn’t let criticism get to him.
As the boss at the Panthers, he – obviously along with coach Ivan Cleary – has made a lot of big decisions on players in the last couple of years.
Plenty of those decisions have been bagged unmercifully, but Gould hasn’t been bothered by any of that.
Luke Lewis, Michael Jennings, Lachlan Coote, Michael Gordon, Luke Walsh and the now-retired Petero Civoniceva are among those who moved on from the club.
They are all excellent players in their own right, but the club had a plan to go in a different direction and the results last season – and particularly early this season – suggest the future is bright.
It is very hard to build a squad as deep and as wide as you need to be successful in the NRL if a small portion of your playing roster is eating up an enormous portion of your salary cap.
That is the problem Penrith faced and rather than live with it the club decided to do something about it.
In came players like James Segeyaro, Peter Wallace, Jamie Soward, Tyrone Peachey, Elijah Taylor, Isaac John, Sika Manu, Kevin Naiqama, Brent Kite and, most recently, Jamal idris.
Lately, there has been talk two more Penrith players who have been on big contracts for some time – Tim Grant and Sam McKendry – were being shopped around to other clubs as well.
We’ll have to wait and see whether that speculation turns into something real.
But with the change in personnel at the Panthers has come a change in playing style and attitude. The depth appears to be there now, too.
The Panthers of a couple of years ago would have lost their way after falling behind in the first half against the Storm, but the team of today didn’t.
They stuck at it and went blow-for-blow in the desperate final stages of a fabulous contest, only losing 18-17 when Wallace failed with a long-range penalty goal attempt right at the end in heavy rain.
Wallace and Soward played together in the halves in the 30-8 win over the Knights, but Soward missed the game against Melbourne through injury. It didn’t stop the Panthers, though. John came in for him and did enough.
Naiqama replaced the injured David Simmons on the wing and scored two tries and probably should have had a third – a forward pass call was questionable.
Idris missed the first-round game through injury, but made a terrific debut for the club against the Storm.
I can see Idris getting back into major representative football if he builds on that form. He was too big and strong for the defence to handle at times – and he played smart.
Nigel Plum and Adam Docker lead the way for the Penrith forwards when it comes to making their defence hurt. Segeyaro and Tyrone Peachey are potential game-breakers off the bench. Matt Moylan is developing at fullback.
The Panthers are good things to make the finals this year – and even put pressure on for a top-four spot. I don’t know if they’re ready to go all the way and win the premiership, but there’s not a lot you should rule out in the NRL – look at the much-maligned St George Illawarra early on.
As for Gould and seafood, he took to Twitter yesterday to detail why, as had been reported, he was lining up for takeaway fish and chips near his southern Sydney home at the same time as the Panthers were fighting out that finish with the Storm.
Gould explained an electrical storm had blacked out the power in his suburb and his wife eventually sent him out to get dinner for the kids.
He said he followed score updates on his mobile.
He even tweeted the family meal list: Prawn cutlets, calamari, grilled ocean perch, fish cocktails, chips and Greek salad.
Sounds like the perfect Saturday evening meal. It made me hungry just thinking about it.
Trev
Guest
Well said. In a nutshell
Trev
Guest
Obviously not up to date on commitment of leagues club. Cant wait to see you proven wrong. No idea
Trev
Guest
Gee i wish you could like these comments
Trev
Guest
No idea
mushi
Guest
Walter under a salary cap that doesn’t distribute junior talent a junior pipeline is the equivalent of having a higher cap number. - It is easier to retain talent than to recruit it. Loyalty exists, it may not be in the outright I will never leave black and white type of loyalty but if you have an employee that is happy where they are then they will normally accept a modest discount to market. - The club that has the player has more information on how that player fits in with their team than any other equally talented evaluator should have on how that same player fits with their team This means other clubs need to take more risk and pay a higher price to poach your talent and they are operating under a salary cap too, if other clubs are over spending on players you know aren’t worth that price then that effectively lowers the cash available for, and the price, of other players you want to buy/retain. Add to that you are regularly getting first grade production out of cheap contracts. You have to spend money as a club to do it but most of the money is spent by families and the government. If a team is losing juniors at “fair market” prices then either they’ve: - got a problem with the culture that the player wants to escape - can’t offer him the same opportunities which is fair enough for him to leave (and means he isn’t that valuable to your club) - prioritised other players that you got at below fair market or, - (the most regular one with some clubs) stuffed up contract management by paying massive over the odds contracts to the wrong players and have no cap room for a junior they knew was coming off contract
Walter Penninger
Roar Guru
The problem with all this is what happens to your salary cap when the minnows grow up and want to leave home?
Fenpatch
Guest
Several clubs saw the writing on the wall a few years back with poker machines and began different plans to make money to run their football operations. The Raiders and Panthers are the main ones. The Raiders have built a real estate portfolio, which is so far $35 million, the commercial rentals from which fund the football team. The Panthers have real estate of over $100 million designed to do the same. These two clubs are sleeping giants. They still have poker machines but they aren't relying on them to pay the football club bills. Other clubs, Souths being the main one, rely on begging for handouts from governments and sponsors. That's Souths' masterplan.
Fenpatch
Guest
Yeah and the $100 million real estate fighting fund Gus has helped build up is peanuts!
Fenpatch
Guest
Peahearts like Rothfield use their high position to ridicule people like Gould who has forgotten more about rugby league than Rothfield will ever know. Check back through the predictions Rothfield gives at the start of every season. A couple of years ago, he tipped the Tigers to win the competition and said that Sandow would be the best signing of the year.
ken oldman
Guest
The Panthers will never get back to their glory days of the early 1990 era, when Alexander.Geyer.Fittler etc, a group of talented young players arrived to complement the experienced Royce Simmons etc......these young cubs all local bred were a one off for despite a huge junior league catchment area available to the Club their like has never been seen again...........why? .... many reasons would arise but really the Club is only interested in the rise and success of the Leagues Club and whatever Gould and Cleary reap by way of success on the playing field is well..just a bonus.
Worlds Biggest
Guest
The future looks very bright in Pantherland. The first grade team should push for top 4 honours, plenty of depth in the squad, reserve grade Grand Finalists last year and 20's premiers. The Leagues Club appears to be back in stong financial shape. Add in the leadership from Gus and Cleary. Kudos to Gus for the turnaround.
Christian D'Aloia
Roar Guru
Thurston was never going anywhere though. I honestly think he just shopped himself around so that the Cowboys would offer him a pay rise.
Clark
Guest
It was made even sweeter after he wrote that piece on Gus' trip to the fish n chip shop, his Sharks got humiliated.
ron brennan
Guest
last time I was at panthers a few years ago, it looked like a les vegas casino. if clubs are not relying on pokies ,why have them ?its a simple question. also there were people saying they were not going to renew their panthers membership, because of the name centrebet stadium. make of that what you will, I certainly know what I make of it.
Greg Prichard
Guest
Yeah, they really look like rubbish.
speedy2460
Guest
Phillip Ronald Gould did the same thing when he took over as adviser to Souths. He bought the greatest load of rubbish players then and I feel he is doing the same now.
Greg Prichard
Guest
Tipping there would always be a supply of various seafood sauces as well as Soy sauce for a Chinese feed at the Gus residence. He loves his Chinese.
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
Im sure their is a jar of it in the fridge. Next to the Seafood sauce.
JohnnoMcJohnno
Guest
No tartare sauce??? What was Phil Gould thinking.
Fenpatch
Guest
Panthers are sleeping giants. Getting their house in order on and off the fields. Backed by the massive leagues club and $100 million in property investments, only matter of time before Panthers taste big success. The Telegraph's Philip Ronald Rothfield mocked Gus when he took over at Penrith two years ago, but Gould is having the last laugh.