Roar Guru
Monday night football returns to the foot of the mountains in Round 22, as the desperate Penrith Panthers play host to the underachieving Sydney Roosters. Join The Roar for all the action from 6:45pm (AEST).
Following the Warriors’ impressive win on Sunday afternoon, this game now holds dramatic implications for the Panthers’ 2016 finals hopes.
Young duo Leilani Latu and Suaia Matagi deservedly earn the start in the front row, with Zak Hardaker again named in the side. The Englishman is yet to set the world on fire but has been doing enough to keep the faith, tonight could be the night we see him really explode.
The attacking threat that lies in the hands of Matt Moylan, Bryce Cartwright and Nathan Cleary will come under the microscope tonight. The challenge during the last few months for the three has been consistency, so expect plenty of early and clean ball down both the left and ride edges.
The Roosters have had a year to forget, but now play the antagonist role, aiming to injure Penrith’s semi-final hopes.
Bucking the trend, the Tricolours were impressive last-start winners over Brisbane, and haven’t played in almost two weeks following that Thursday night win. The rest will no doubt help them in challenging nighttime conditions.
Blake Ferguson is again named at fullback, with livewire Latrell Mitchell named on the wing. Both Roosters halves have been impressive of late, with Connor Watson and Mitchell Pearce asking plenty of questions of tired defensive lines. Watch for their dynamic running games out wide.
On what should be a cold Monday night at the foot of the mountains, the Roosters need to find the motivation to win, expecting the majority of the crowd to be wearing black, brown and pink.
Prediction
With both sides in very different positions, it’s hard to see the Roosters having enough to knock the Panthers off.
I’ll take Penrith in a closer-than-expected result.
Penrith by 6