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Wayne Bennett reckons he’s studied Penrith less than any team this season, but the South Sydney coach has a week to study up before the preliminary final.
They’ve been the hottest ticket in town but Bennett has barely taken in a moment of Penrith’s record-breaking run this year.
And now the South Sydney master coach has seven days to study up ahead of the biggest game of the Rabbitohs’ season in next Saturday night’s preliminary final.
Penrith and Souths have not faced off since Round 7, when Nathan Cleary put aside a skin infection in his face to lead the Panthers to a 20-12 win.
That win was just Penrith’s second in their streak of 16, while the Rabbitohs have lost just four of 15 since ahead of the grand final qualifier at ANZ Stadium.
Souths will also enter as arguably the competition’s most dangerous side, with their 38-24 semi-final win over Parramatta on Saturday night making it 144 points scored in just three weeks.
“To be honest, they (Penrith) are the team I’ve watched least all season,” Bennett said.
“We played them early in the season at (Kogarah) and haven’t come across them again.
“I’ll be honest, we’ve hardly looked at them.
“A lot of times, you play a team when you’re going through the rounds and you see other teams they are playing.
“We just never seem to have been playing teams (after them).”
What Bennett will see when he pores over footage of Penrith is a team that has gone to another level since June.
The battle of the halves will be enticing, with Adam Reynolds the ultimate controller and Jarome Luai, Nathan Cleary and Cody Walker all in the form of their career.
Damien Cook and Api Koroisau are the best two running hookers in the competition, both benefiting supremely from the NRL’s new six-again rule.
Both packs are also punching well above their weight, while each side has young stars in the backline.
But while Penrith have improved, Bennett has no doubt his side has too with the Rabbitohs clearly playing at their best at the right time of the year.
“We’ve been getting better,” he said.
“The round-seven team aren’t the major semi-final team you’ve just seen here tonight.
“I think we played about 70 per cent of our ability tonight. I thought we were better last week (in the win over Newcastle).
“We’ve got to find a bit more, and we’ve got the opportunity to do that.”
© AAP
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