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The Penrith Panthers are looking to improve on their Round 7 loss to the Sharks when they host the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs. Join The Roar from 7:55pm (AEST) for live scores and coverage.
Penrith are coming off a 26-22 defeat – their first loss since going down to this week’s opponents in Round 3, as halfback Nathan Cleary went off injured on the stroke of halftime.
The Mountain Men were exploited across the park by Cronulla, with injuries crippling the side. While James Maloney has slotted in well to the No.7 jumper vacated by Cleary, Josh Mansour and Waqa Blake’s absences are stretching Anthony Griffin’s backline stocks thin.
As for the Bulldogs, last time out they failed to spark in attack against the Sydney Roosters, in a dour 6-0 loss. They had the lion’s share of possession off the back of some strong hit-ups by David Klemmer, Josh Jackson and Raymond Faitala-Mariner, but were unable to convert opportunities in the red zone to points, with Kieran Foran finding it hard to adjust back to the rigours of the NRL.
The only positive to come out of their performance was their defence, keeping the Tricolours to only one try. It will be a stern test against the Panthers though who possess a large, mobile pack and have averaged 23 points per game, significantly more than Canterbury’s dismal 14.
The Panthers and Bulldogs have played each on 93 occasions throughout their history, with Canterbury winning 52 times to Penrith’s 38, with three matches drawn.
Matches played at the foot of the mountains have been much closer however, with the Dogs getting up on 23 ocassions to the Panthers’ 21.
Prediction
Penrith will return to the winners’ circle as the Bulldogs continue to struggle.
Panthers by 8.
Join The Roar from 7:55pm (AEST) for score updates and debate in our live blog.
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